Whose responsibility is it to fill out the radiology checklist?

[Arenn]

As a med surg nurse sending a or down for a MRI I often get multiple calls from radiology about the checklist. Is it their job to have the other full it out or mine. ?

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

Refer to your facility policy. I work OR; it is the responsibility of the nurse on the floor to complete the preop checklist prior to the patient coming to the preop area. These checklists include things such as heparin was stopped, patient is able to sign own consent or responsible party is available, notes of things coming to the OR with the patient such as glasses, patient is NPO, morning chlorhexidine bath was completed, etc. It's not the things that preop is responsible for completing but those things that make it possible for preop to do their job.

[PCnurse88]

Agreed, it varies facility to facility. At my per diem, the nurse has to help the patient fill out the MRI screening; at my full-time, it is the job of the MRI tech. Pre-op checklist falls to the night shift nurse who takes care of them the midnight of the surgery at both facilities. Depends on policy and rationale.

[brownbook]

The check list ensures that the patient is medically and physically ready to have an MRI. It would be pointless for the MRI staff to fill out a check list after the patient arrives only to find that for various reason the patient cannot have the MRI done. Big waste of the MRI staff's time, other patients could have been scheduled in the cancelled patients place, etc. The MRI staff will review the check list when the patient arrives to make sure everything is ok.

The patient's nurse fills it out ahead of time. The checklist can be started the day before the procedure. That way if there are problems they can be corrected ahead of time or the MRI can be re-scheduled. The check list should be rechecked by their nurse before the patient leaves for the MRI.