May 2016
Perioperative
Hospital
Perioperative Services
Medstar St. Mary's Hospital
Leonardtown
,
MD
United States
Mary Grace Weeks, Stacy Corrick, BSN, RN, CNOR; Rebecca Wathen, BSN, RN, CNOR; Jennifer Jeffries, RN
The Perioperative Services team's dedication, persistence, and communication resulted in the recovery of a missing sponge during a hip replacement. When initial imaging of the wound showed no signs of the sponge, Rebecca, Jennifer, and Grace alerted Stacey regarding concerns over the missing sponge. The team used the chain of command, collaborated with the surgeon and developed an innovative plan to make further attempts to find the missing sponge. As a result, the sponge was found in the patient, who returned to surgery and had the sponge removed.