The 2009 AORN Congress: Topics and Trends in Perioperative Nursing

by Kathy Mahdoubi, Senior Correspondent | March 27, 2009

Another ongoing concern for nurses and surgeons are the Joint Commission's "Universal Protocol for Preventing Wrong Site, Wrong Procedure, Wrong Person Surgery," which was updated as of January this year.

Credentialing, reimbursement issues and safety protocol were also on the minds of AORN's exhibitors. James Sweeney is vice president of marketing for ClearCount, a company providing radio frequency identification (RFID) of surgical sponges and other solutions that prevent retained foreign objects after a surgical procedure. Sweeney estimates that this occurs in one of 1,500 intra-abdominal surgeries, which is "not acceptable," he said.

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ClearCount was awarded AORN's first Seal of Recognition for Operating Procedures this month, before the conference was convened. The Seal of Recognition award is given to providers who show excellent accordance with AORN Perioperative Standards and Recommended Practices. The company is also the first to introduce the first "Never Event Warranty."

"The Never Event Warranty provides insurance to our customers that we stand behind our product," said Sweeney. "In the case of a retained object, because our system is so comprehensive, we will pay for the redo surgery for up to $100,000 of the cost."

ClearCount is just one of several companies offering checks and balances for those concerned about preventable errors and their rising cost.

"We're seeing a trend in customers being focused on safety solutions," said Sweeney. "Companies have ramped up their activity in part because there's more awareness and focus on never event errors."

Sweeney also noted that product development is a "continuous evolution" that takes a significant amount of time, and that products now coming out had safety in mind from their inception, not due to changes in reimbursement policy.

In addition to education and product exhibition, the AORN Congress also put on a 5K run, which raised $12,000 for the AORN foundation and involved 650 participants.

The 2010 AORN is scheduled to be held in Denver, the association's home city. It will be the first time that the Congress will be held there.

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