Sarah was the last line of defense. And her weapon was a three-ring binder, dog-eared and highlighted, sitting on the charting desk. AORN Guidelines for Perioperative Practice, 2024 Edition.
In a malpractice lawsuit, attorneys frequently ask: "Did you follow the AORN Guidelines?" If a perioperative nurse deviates from a published guideline and a patient is harmed, the court may view that deviation as negligence per se (negligence as a matter of law). The guidelines represent the "standard of care" in the OR. aorn guidelines for perioperative practice
The AORN Perioperative Nursing Data Set (PNDS) provides standardized language for documentation. Use audit tools to verify that nurses are documenting the use of warming devices, the time of prophylactic antibiotic administration, and the completion of the surgical pause. Sarah was the last line of defense