Needlestick and Sharp Injuries among Healthcare Workers in the Operating Theatre| Chapter 6 | An Overview of Disease and Health Research Vol. 9

 

Introduction: The risks and leading occupational accidents that healthcare workers are exposed to include needlestick injury. Most surgeons and healthcare workers face at least one injury during their professional life, and therefore, such injuries are an important problem. The present narrative literature review was carried out to determine situations that caused needle stick injury in the operating theatre, the precautions taken to prevent these injuries and to highlight the importance of this issue in the light of the current literature. In as many as 50% of surgical operations, the mucus membranes and skin of surgical theatre personnel are in contact with patient blood. In as many as 15% of operations, needle sticks or cuts may occur, and the risk increases with procedures involving a high blood loss, longer procedures and more invasive procedures. Surgeons and primary assistants incur the greatest risk at 59.1% for operating theatre injuries. The remainder of injuries are sustained by scrub nurses (19.1%), anaesthesiologists (6.2%), circulating nurses (6%), medical students (3.1%), attendants (0.8%) and others (5.7%). The greatest risk-per-needle of sharps injury to the surgeon occurs with straight suture needles. During the suturing of muscle and fascia with curved suture needles, 59% of suture needle injuries occur. Routine use of blunt suture needles and double gloving by surgeons and healthcare workers is strongly supported for use in the operating theatre as recommended techniques to reduce sharp injuries. Under-reporting rates among surgeons mean that the true rate of sharps injuries remains undetermined, resulting in an unquantified risk to surgeons and, therefore, patients. All healthcare staff should be updated on hospital policy, and hospitals should consider designing a simplified method to ease the process of reporting sharps injuries. Although there is a low risk of transmission of blood-borne viruses with a sharps injury, the consequences of transmission are high, and the healthcare worker should report early and practice appropriate precautions.

 

Author(s) Details

Richard Wismayer
Department of Surgery, Masaka Regional Referral Hospital, Masaka, Uganda, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Health Sciences, Equator University of Science and Technology, Masaka, Uganda and Department of Surgery, Faculty of Health Sciences, Islamic University in Uganda, Kampala, Uganda.

 

Please see the book here :- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/aodhr/v9/7026

 

AI-Driven Solutions for Operating Theatre Efficiency Enhancement| Chapter 2 | Medical Research and Its Applications Vol. 1

Operating theatre efficiency remains a crucial concern within health care systems, directly influencing the timeliness and effectiveness of surgical care. It is important for a variety of reasons, including patient satisfaction, cost savings, medical team morale, improved infection control, and reduced turnaround time. However, persistent challenges like surgical delays, suboptimal scheduling, and inefficient resource allocation persist. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a promising avenue to address these challenges and optimize operating theatre efficiency. This article provides an in-depth exploration of the implications of AI in improving surgical punctuality, scheduling precision, and resource allocation.

Key components of AI-driven strategies encompass machine learning models, intelligent management systems, and optimization algorithms. Recent research demonstrates that machine learning models exhibit remarkable accuracy in predicting surgical case durations, leading to improved and streamlined surgical scheduling and punctuality. Simultaneously, intelligent management systems play a pivotal role in facilitating, patient flow management, and optimizing resource distribution. The application of optimization algorithms, including genetic algorithms, is instrumental in resolving intricate scheduling dilemmas and curtailing waiting times. Optimization algorithms improve operating theatre efficiency by minimizing downtime, reducing patient waiting times, and maximizing resource utilization through careful scheduling. The integration of AI into efforts to enhance operating theatre efficiency promises numerous benefits, including improved patient care standards, reduced costs, and heightened operational efficiency. However, challenges pertaining to data quality, interpretability, and organizational adaptability, need to be addressed rigorously. Ethical and legal considerations of patient privacy, data security, and algorithm biases must be scrupulously managed while using AI in healthcare. To harness AI's full potential, future advancements should focus on real-time data analytics, predictive modeling, and autonomous decision-making. These inferences from this article underscore AI's transformative impact on optimizing operating theatre efficiency and emphasise the need for well-defined ethical guidelines and comprehensive regulations to ensure responsible implementation.

 

Author (s) details:-

 

 

Wiam El Jellouli
Department of Surgery and Scientific Research, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

 

Wiam El Jellouli
Department of Surgery and Scientific Research, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

 

Wiam El Jellouli
Department of Surgery and Scientific Research, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

Mohamed Alioui
Department of Surgery, Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V, Military Hospital, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

 

Houda Nadir
Department of Surgery and Scientific Research, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

Mustapha Bensghir
Department of Surgery, Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V, Military Hospital, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

Khalil Abou Elalaa (Head of the Operating Room Theatre)
Department of Surgery, Anesthesiology and Intensive Care, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V, Military Hospital, Mohammed V University, Rabat, Morocco.

 

Please See the book here :-  https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/mria/v1/8430E