The intra-operative care safety study: Medical errors in the operating room

Abstract

Background: Patient safety is an important part of intra-operative care because some patients may be more vulnerable. Medical errors may lead to various injuries. Objective: It is aimed to observe the medical errors inthe operating room and determine the practices of healthcare nurses in case of mistakes and their needs of information. Methods: The descriptive study was carried out at a state hospital in Turkey inJune 2016 and involved 42 operating room nurses, as well as observing 339 operations. The validity of the healthcare practices was compared. The data were collected via the observation method and recorded on data forms. We counted the percentage scores for each dimension of patient safety culture and assessed the factors contributing to patient safety errors. Results: 42 professionals, six types of surgery, 339 operations and six dimensions of patient safety were observed and divided into nine contributing factors. The most common medical errors were in abdominal surgery by 23.18 %, the most frequently stated dimensions were patient diagnosis, and intervention safety by 31.96 %, the most effective contributing factor that increased the probability of making mistakes was lack of experience, knowledge, and training by 32.42 %. Conclusion: In health care, adverse events constitute a high risk or reducing the quality of care. Precautions should be taken for patient safety principles to an optimal level by individuals, institutions, and states. © 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.