Certified Professional in Patient Safety (CPPS) Practice Exam

How should leadership respond when the instrument count is incorrect after a surgical procedure?

1. Revise the policy to require surgeons to stay until resolved.

2. Counsel the surgeon about customary clinical standards.

3. Re-educate OR nursing staff on instrument tracking.

4. Create a process map for instrument management during surgery.

The correct answer is: Counsel the surgeon about customary clinical standards.

The best response when the instrument count is incorrect after a surgical procedure is to counsel the surgeon about customary clinical standards. This approach acknowledges the critical role that all team members, particularly the surgeon, play in ensuring patient safety and maintaining high standards of care during surgery. Counseling serves to reinforce the importance of adhering to established protocols and encourages open dialogue about compliance with these standards. By focusing on the surgeon's knowledge and understanding of customary practices, leadership can promote awareness of the implications associated with incorrect instrument counts, which can lead to significant patient harm. This approach fosters a culture of safety by emphasizing accountability and the necessity for vigilance in an environment where lapses can have grave consequences. While revising policies or re-educating nursing staff could be beneficial in a broader context, the immediate need is to address accountability and a culture of safety with the surgeon directly involved. Creating process maps might help in the long run for systematic improvements, but it does not address the specific issue of non-compliance with instruments counts in the immediate context of patient safety.