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Article: Counting sterile towels.(CLINICAL ISSUES)
- Article from:
- AORN Journal
- Article date:
- April 1, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 Association of Operating Room Nurses, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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QUESTION: One of our surgeons wanted to pack the wound of an obese patient with towels rather than laparotomy sponges. The circulating nurse and scrub person did not want to use the towels because the towels were not part of the preprocedure count nor were they x-ray detectable. The circulating nurse was afraid that the towels could be left in the surgical wound inadvertently. Because sterile towels do not have radiopaque markers, should we be counting them? What procedure should be followed when towels are missing and there is a count discrepancy? Would radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology help with lost towels?
ANSWER: AORN's "Recommended practices ...