Journal Review

Journal Review Joshua McMillan Karrie Wilson September Article reviewed: Yang YT, Henry L., Dellinger M., Yonish K., Emerson B., Seifert PC. The Circulating Nurse’s role in Error Recovery in the Cardiovascular O.R. AORN J95 (June 2012) 755-762. Authors credentials and their institutional affiliations: Y. Tony Yang, Sc.D., M.P.H., of George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. Linda Henry, PhD, RN, Research investigator at Inova Heart and Vascular Institute, VA. Mary Dellinger, BSN, RN, ANP, CNOR, CRNFA, Registered nurse first assistant Inova Heart and vascular Institute, VA. Kersten Yonish, BSN, RN, CNOR, CRNFA, Registered nurse first assistant Inova Heart and vascular Institute, VA. Brett Emerson, BSN, RN, CNOR, Staff Nurse Inova Heart and vascular Institute, VA. Patricia C. Seifert, MSN, RN, CNOR, CRNFA, FAAN, staff member in the cardiovascular OR, Inova Heart and Vascular institute, VA Journal the article was published in: AORN( Association of preoperative Registered Nurses) Nature of Article: Empirical study using quantitative data. Year of Publication: 2012 Summary Summarize the purpose of the article: The purpose of this article was to access the number of incidences and types of errors or potential errors that may occur and are recovered by the circulating nurse in the OR, during coronary artery or valve surgery.

What specific questions or issues were the authors addressing? The Institute of Medicine report To err is human estimated that medical errors in hospitalized patients result in more then one million injuries and between 44,000 and 98000 deaths annually.1 The main questions were to prove the important role the circulating nurse plays in identification of an error and error recovery and also the various types of errors which occurred within the OR. How did the Author present the information? The Author gave an organized detailed overview of the study that was being performed. What Data was included? The results from this study were in an easy to understand percentage table chart, with a detailed Percentage breakdown of potential errors and errors that actually occurred. What were the author's principal findings and / or conclusions? Over the course of this study the circulating nurse observed 200 incidents; of these incidents 77% of the errors were prevented. This study determined that without the circulating nurse the errors that occur in the OR, could have resulted in serious, possibly life threatening injuries. Critique Is the article relevant and useful? What are the implications? Yes this article was relevant and useful. Was enough information included to thoroughly address the topic? I believe that there is enough information to thoroughly address this study. What are the limitations of this article? All surgeries were CABG surgeries which involve same surgical procedure which could possibly limit the types of errors that occur as well as less chance for any unexpected complications. The study was done on Monday to Friday at regular hours of 7am to 3pm there were no off hour or emergency surgeries in which many other factors can contribute to error i.e. fatigue, stress, and time. In this study the average nurse had 10 years experience.

Do these limit the conclusions that can be made about these results? What questions do you still have about the topic?

With the limitations which were addressed above there was still an average of 11 errors per surgery, this proves the importance of the circulating nurse. There is a high probability that the total amount of errors would be higher without these limitations. My question would be how different the results would be if they were to study emergency surgeries with less experienced nurses. Is the conclusion satisfactory? The conclusion in my opinion is satisfactory , it shows the important role the nurse plays in the OR in providing a safe environment for the patient, without them many errors would have gone unnoticed which could result in serious outcomes. i.e. infection, medication error, and tissue or skin injury.

References 1. Institute of Medicine. Kohn LT, Corrigan JM, Donaldson MS, eds. To Err is Human: Building a safer Health System. Washington, DC; National Academies Press; 1999