Related Experiment Videos
Have you "CORED" lately? A comprehensive operating room evacuation drill
Alexander Hart1, Meg Femino2, Bryan Sears3
1Director of Education, Fellowship in Disaster Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
American Journal of Disaster Medicine
|March 2, 2019
Summary
Emergent operating room (OR) evacuation during surgery is feasible, with a median time of under 4 minutes. Drills enhance OR evacuation efficiency and identify critical needs in leadership and communication.
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology
- Surgical Operations
- Emergency Medicine
Background:
- Operating room (OR) crises necessitate rapid responses to minimize patient and staff harm.
- Mid-procedure evacuation presents unique challenges with limited data on optimal protocols.
- Understanding training needs for hospital staff during emergent evacuations is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the feasibility and timing of emergent mid-procedure operating room (OR) evacuations.
- To identify key lessons learned from a simulated OR evacuation.
- To assess the effectiveness of OR evacuation drills.
Main Methods:
- A full-scale simulation exercise was conducted for emergent mid-procedure evacuation of seven ORs.
- Data collection involved direct observation, post-drill debriefings, and participant surveys.
- Analysis focused on evacuation times and participant feedback.
Main Results:
- The median time for evacuation from the OR to a safe zone was 3 minutes and 50 seconds.
- Evacuation times ranged from 1 minute 22 seconds to 6 minutes.
- Direct observation and participant feedback revealed critical themes in leadership, communication, and care coordination.
Conclusions:
- Emergent mid-procedure OR evacuations can be performed efficiently.
- Effective leadership, communication, and coordination are vital for successful evacuations.
- Regular OR evacuation drills are recommended for surgical teams to improve preparedness.