Every Day is Time Out Day.
June 17, 2009
Wrong-site surgery and other preventable mistakes still occur too frequently in US operating rooms. That's why in 2004, The Joint Commission released the Universal Protocol urging that a "time out" precede every surgical procedure to verify the correct patient information prior to incision. In support of the Universal Protocol, AORN began sponsoring National Time Out Day to raise awareness about the importance of requiring the entire surgical team—including physicians, nurses, and surgical technologists—to pause before all invasive procedures to communicate as a group and confirm key information about the patient and procedure to help prevent errors from occurring.
This year, AORN collaborated with American Nurses Association, the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgical Facilities, the Council on Surgical & Perioperative Safety, and The Joint Commission to create a poster to remind professionals, health care providers, and administrators that "Every Day is Time Out Day."
2009 National Time Out Day Posters
Members of AORN, AAAASF, ANA, and CSPS can order this year's poster while supplies last by calling the AORN Customer Service Department at 800-755-2676, Ext. 1. The 11" x 17" poster can also be downloaded. Click on "Poster PDF" or "Poster Edit" to print. (Your logo can be added to Poster Edit.)
Correct Site Surgical Tool Kit
The new Correct Site Surgical Tool Kit is now available at aorn.org/Toolkits - free to members.
National Time Out Day Video Contest
AORN is pleased to announce the videos submitted by the facilities listed below have been selected to help demonstrate the surgical Time Out procedure to other OR professionals.
All entries were reviewed by clinical editors of recommended practices of AORN and evaluated according to criteria set for compliance using the WHO check list or the components of the Universal Protocol. The judges’ ten selections were strong in meeting each component of their facility’s respective check list and, while minor discrepancies from the AORN recommended practices were considered as tie-breakers in the assessment, they did not prevent a video from being selected as representative of the time out procedure.
The ten selected AORN National Time Out Day videos are:
Children’s Hospital – Boston
Exempla St. Joseph – Denver
Jennersville Regional Hospital – Westgrove, Penn.
Marion General Hospital – Marion, Ind.
Memorial University Medical Center – Savannah, Ga.
NYU Langone – New York
St. Joseph Mercy – Howell, Mich.
University Hospital – Cincinnati
Florida Hospital – Orlando, Fla.
White River Medical Center – Batesville, Ark.
In addition, two facilities earned an Honorable Mention. They are Christus St. John, Nassau Bay, Texas for its good comparison of the progression, and Fairview Southdale, Edina, Minnesota for its good display of team review; scrub person, surgeon, nurse, and anesthesia.
2009 AORN National Time Out Day Partners
- American Nurses Association
- American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgical Facilities
- Council on Surgical & Perioperative Safety (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) Association of Surgical Technologists (AST))
- The Joint Commission