Use of a Perioperative Fire Prevention Guide by Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists: A Quality Improvement Project

Abstract

Operating room fires are preventable events that can have devastating consequences for patients and healthcare organizations. Hospitals have acute interest in training all operating room workers to prevent fires from occurring, to readily recognize situations that carry a high risk of fire, and to respond quickly should a fire occur. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to assess anesthesia providers’ perceptions of adequacy of a newly developed perioperative fire prevention checklist specifically designed for CRNAs working in the operating rooms of a large southeastern U.S. hospital system. Pre-intervention surveys established the providers’ baseline exposure to fire recognition and prevention training. A checklist was designed to allow providers to quickly identify high-risk procedures and to serve as an algorithm of communication and collaboration with other providers. Five CRNAs used this checklist in their daily practice for approximately three weeks, after which their feedback was used to assess its usefulness. Post-intervention surveys found increased CRNA confidence in fire prevention, as well as potential time savings in finding specific safety-related instructions for high-risk procedures. This project included only five participants in one organization but was reviewed positively by all of them. Further trials of this tool involving a larger population may be sought in the future.