Anesthesia Malpractice Prevention

Any person involved in the administration of anesthesia may be held liable for malpractice and personal injuries if he acts negligently. There are many cases where patients do not wake up after surgery due to negligent anesthesia care. In order to prevent any an anesthesia malpractice lawsuit, proper anesthesia care should be observed.

Before the operation

Pre-anesthesia care involves evaluating the patient, confirming pre-operative data, and recording the operative plans. The record should contain complete personal information of all people participating in the procedure, including the nurses, anesthetics, anesthesiologists, surgeons and even their assistants. Final patient assessment for anesthesia tolerance should never be forgotten before proceeding with the operation.

During the operation

Before beginning with the operation, the patient should be positioned properly with the correct placement of intravenous lines. Monitoring equipment including electrocardiograms (ECG), oximetry, and automatic pressure cuffs should be well set-up. The anesthesia staff is responsible for other activities such as intubation of airways on the patient, placement of tourniquets, and management and delivery of agents, medicines, oxygen, and other fluids. All operative activities, including urine output and blood loss, should be monitored and evaluated by the staff as well.

All information gathered from the operation is compressed in an organized record. It should contain charts for vital signs, fluids, and drugs; numerous data blocks; and simple notes for important events that occurred. These data should never be taken for granted as they will be inspected for reference to the on-going and future operations.

The patient should not be discharged from the operating room to the recovery room unless he is already conscious and stable.

After the operation

If the operation is successful, the patient is then placed in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) under the service and care of the anesthesia department. Nurses and other health staff from that department should continue to monitor and evaluate, at regular time period, the vital signs and pulse oximetry of the patient. After enough observation, the patient can be assessed if he is ready for discharge from the unit--either to another hospital service or from the hospital. The nursing staff should always keep the anesthesiologist informed of the condition of the patient while the doctor ensures that the operation was successful.

Article Source: http://www.new.citynewslive.com

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