The Council on Surgical and Perioperative Safety (CSPS) endorses a safe surgery resource chart to reduce the risk of noise and distraction in the perioperative period.  The chart emphasizes attention to the elements of noise and distraction, infection control, and privacy.

In the chart, CSPS recommends a multidisciplinary team approach to reduce the level of noise and create a safer environment for patients.  It stresses that noise takes away from the silence team members may need to perform operations safely.  It also warns that the use of cellular phones and accessories can cause distraction and bacterial contamination, which may compromise a sterile perioperative environment.  Lastly, the chart recommends that each hospital’s policy should determine if it is appropriate to take and transmit photos of patients.

Roy Constantine, CSPS Treasurer, said the group developed the chart to raise awareness about noise and distractions after reviewing recommendations from its member organizations.  “We’re asking everyone to be prudent lest a bad event occur to patients and staff as a result of a distraction,” he said.

CSPS encourages all hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and procedural areas to use the chart—which can be downloaded from the group’s website—as a cognitive aid to enhance awareness and promote best practice.

The Council on Surgical and Perioperative Safety (CSPS) is an incorporated multidisciplinary coalition of professional organizations whose members are involved in the care of surgical patients.

Member organizations are the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA), American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants (AASPA), American College of Surgeons (ACS), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses (ASPAN), Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) and Association of Surgical Technologists (AST).