Red means stop. Red says, "Pay attention!" Red takes charge. In the perioperative environment, which demands the unambiguous communication of a lot of information as clearly and as rapidly as possible, red gets a message across on the double. Here are a few ways that resourceful surgical managers have put the color to use in the service of patient safety.

1. Fall risk reduction. When all your other patients are wearing standard gray grippy-soled socks, the ones in red non-slip booties will definitely stand out. That's why you might want to consider putting red socks on your fall risk patients, including those who use a cane or a walker. The red socks will identify patients who require extra handling, mobility or ambulation care, and will help to prevent fall injuries.

2. Medication safety. Preparing a patient's medications is one of many tasks that must never be interrupted. But because the preparer is often working in the middle of other activities, with her back turned, it's easy to accidentally interrupt her. To ward off distractions, hand out inexpensive red dish towels to your nursing staff, instructing them to drape the towels over their shoulders while they're drawing up meds and never to disturb a red-toweled colleague. It's a highly visible and highly effective "red flag" for safety.

3. Allergy alert. Red wristbands — commonly used to alert providers to medication, latex or other allergies or sensitivities — ?only cost a couple of cents per patient. So wrap one around every patient's wrist, whether they have allergies or their bracelet reads "NKA" for "no known allergies." That way you can be sure that every surgeon, anesthesia provider, nurse and tech will take the time to look at the bracelet, and that they each have the complete and correct information for every patient.

4. A backup method. To ensure safe medication delivery, you might also find it useful to list a patient's allergies on a red chart sticker and affix that to the IV tubing near the drip chamber. This additional alert all but guarantees awareness of a patient's precautions, and is particularly useful when patients waiting in a chilly room have tucked their arms — and their red allergy alert wristbands — under the blanket.

5. Patient preparation. Many of you use color-coded chart stickers or inserts, hanging signs or flags to indicate a patient's readiness for surgery, but everyone knows that red means stop and green means go. Laminated, traffic-light-colored paper hands on tongue depressors stand out among all the items at a pre-op patient's bedside and wave providers on to the next action. While the green hand clears a patient for their transport to the OR, the red hand means they're still waiting on a lab test results check or a consent form signature.

6. A call to attention. You don't always need a red flag to indicate caution. Red is a state of mind. And when the OR is a noisy, chaotic place, a "Red Zone of Silence" can clear the air of distractions that could lead to surgical errors. This mandatory moment of peace and quiet, called just before closing, turns off the music, stops unnecessary conversations, prohibits the answering of mobile phones and allows the team members tasked with closing counts to complete and verify the job.