Abstract
The importance of patient safety in medicine and dentistry cannot be understated.
Wrong tooth extractions account for approximately 25% of wrong-site surgery, and the
implications for the patient, the team, and the institution can be profound. The development
of national safety standards for invasive procedures (NatSSIPs) has led to the introduction
of specialty-specific local safety standards for invasive procedures (LocSSIPs), with
the aim of improving safety further. The implementation of outpatient LocSSIPs is
recommended in clinical dentistry when surgical interventions regularly take place.
We have implemented an outpatient LocSSIPs checklist for all procedures done under
local anaesthesia in the oral and maxillofacial surgical unit of a large district
general hospital. Feedback from a staff survey six months after its introduction was
positive from both clinicians and nursing staff. Since its implementation 18 months
ago no serious incidents have been reported and staff think that safety has improved.
The reporting of incidents, for example, missing clinical notes and faulty equipment,
has become more common (showing better awareness) and the development of a team-led
approach has improved the running of the department.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 25, 2020
Accepted:
January 23,
2020
Received:
August 15,
2019
Identification
Copyright
© 2020 The British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
