Instructional Technology Resource
Among the most beneficial instructional technology resources with the potential to enhance learning in the operating room is a journal of the Association of Operating Room Nurses. Experienced professionals develop detailed articles that reveal how to use instruments and equipment during various procedures in the operating room. For instance, those technology options that were discussed recently referred to electrosurgeries, lasers, and sterilization.
This instructional technology resource is a guide that helps students and novice professionals to learn how to work in operating rooms. These participants do not have enough experience yet, but they need to practice already. In the framework of education, people usually have an opportunity to learn from mistakes, but in this environment, such an approach is not the best option. Everything should be maintained properly in the operating room because it is vital for professionals to ensure patient safety. Using the selected instructional technology resource, participants will have a chance to get to know how to use various devices effectively.
It is also advantageous that they can learn within a healthcare setting, educational establishment, or at home. The journal can be easily downloaded and carried to the hospital so that a learner can try to maintain offered manipulations. It is also possible to use it in an educational establishment or to resort to self-education at home because detailed descriptions and illustrations are included. The integration of this resource into the selected environments will improve the learning of the use of surgical devices through provided recommendations and identified challenges. It reveals recommended practices for the participants to follow them and become more independent.
Technology Options
Spruce and Braswell (2012) focused on the maintenance of electrosurgeries. They educate readers on how to determine what electrosurgical devices should be purchased and ensure safety through the minimization of the potential for injuries. They also point out the main precautions that should be considered in the framework of minimally invasive surgery, explaining the ways to avoid issues associated with surgical smoke hazards. This technology option is selected because it is vital for professionals who work in the operating room, as it describes the usage of all critical equipment involved in electrosurgeries (Steege, Boiano, & Sweeney, 2016).
It includes peculiarities of documentation, descriptions of policies and procedures, and ways to ensure the maintenance of high-quality care. In this way, it can lead to performance improvement, which is its main benefit. This option was selected because it discusses a wide range of devices and elements related to their usage, such as checklists. It is advantageous that his article provides information needed to ensure patient safety. However, participants may find it difficult to focus on many devices at the same time and may mix up different information.
Castelluccio (2012) discussed the technology option for laser safety. The author focuses on the potential hazards that are connected with the use of this tool. For example, she discusses eye damage and fire/smoke-related injuries. This article was selected when considering up-to-date devices used in the operation room. It is very advantageous for readers as it includes practice recommendations based on the best practices. Following them, professionals receive an opportunity to implement the most effective safety measures and ensure both staff and patient safety. The article focuses on the control of laser use areas, emphasizing the necessity to avoid the laser beam.
It also educates readers regarding the necessity of eyewear usage. This option is advantageous because it includes patient scenarios and real-life examples that are vital for practice. Unfortunately, issues may be faced, as laser safety is often treated as a simple topic, and learners tend to pay insufficient attention to it. They also may emphasize the possibility to resort to previously used technologies instead of this one (Abell, Kerr, & Vote, 2013).
One more useful technology option discussed by the Association of Operating Room Nurses deals with the peculiarities of sterilization (“RP summary,” 2013). It was selected while searching for the recent articles published in the desired source and then chosen due to its differences. This article is a summary of recommended practices that resort to sterilization. It is extremely advantageous for those readers who operate in the surgical environments because it allows them to focus not on the particular devices but on the practice critical for the whole sphere (Plante, Li, Scully, Brown, & Busconi, 2013).
This source discusses only the key points of every practice, avoiding various details. Even though it is better to search for the whole articles that include a thorough discussion of all usage peculiarities to ensure an in-depth understanding of the material, it may be better to resort to this summary afterward to refresh the most critical points and reduce the time needed for learners to get ready to practice. One more drawback of this source is that it does not gather recommendations in groups so that it will be easy to navigate through them. Still, the benefits of this article seem to overcome issues related to it. The integration of this option is likely to be the easiest one because it includes only the most important information that is clearly written and well structured. Readers can resort to the practical outcomes immediately, avoiding lots of theoretical information.
References
Abell, R., Kerr, N., & Vote, B. (2013). Femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery compared with conventional cataract surgery. Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology, 41(5), 455-462.
Castelluccio, D. (2012). Implementing AORN recommended practices for laser safety association of operating room nurses. Association of Operating Room Nurses Journal, 95(5), 612-624.
Plante, M., Li, X., Scully, G., Brown, M., & Busconi, B. (2013). Evaluation of sterilization methods following contamination of hamstring autograft during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy, 21(3), 696-701.
RP summary: Recommended practices for sterilization. (2013). Association of Operating Room Nurses Journal, 97(5), 534-537.
Spruce, L., & Braswell, M. (2012). Implementing AORN recommended practices for electrosurgery. Association of Operating Room Nurses Journal, 95(3), 373-387.
Steege, A., Boiano, J., & Sweeney, M. (2016). Secondhand smoke in the operating room? Precautionary practices lacking for surgical smoke. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 59(11), 1020-1031.