Wired magazine has coined the term “distracted doctoring” to describe physicians who use laptops, smartphones and tablets during surgery. While we all know that the use of devices is not isolated to the OR department, it is still shocking to imagine that this is happening, especially in a so-called sterile environment.
I asked nurses who still work in hospitals if they’ve witnessed these occurrences and indeed they have.
Several nurses admitted to holding a cell phone to a surgeon’s ear while the surgeon was performing a procedure.
One nurse, Traci, shared: “I have turned off a surgeon’s phone and pretended that I didn’t realize what I’d done. I have also taken the phone off the wall in the OR and hid it in a cabinet, because the surgeon I worked with was a phone junkie, and would take forever to get to work. Not to mention the extra costs to the patient who was already under anesthesia while the calls were going on.”
Another nurse, Marie, was a victim herself: “I had a physician texting as I was being prepped for a procedure. I was told he had to answer calls so he could concentrate. Shortly thereafter the Versed and Propofol kicked in… thank the heavens.”
One CLNC® consultant even shared: “I have been involved in a case where the surgeon used her smartphone during a laparoscopic cholecystectomy… by the way the patient is now missing her entire biliary tree.”
Nurses are also concerned about infectious disease issues, in what is supposed to be a sterile environment.
I’ve blogged in the past about the discoverability of cell phone messages and records. The potential liability of distracted doctoring is huge, not just for the doctor, but for everyone around him.
What’s a healthcare provider to do? First, every hospital and outpatient surgical center must have strict policies in place regarding use of devices during surgery. Second, RNs are going to have to get very assertive about enforcing a “no device” policy. Third, hospitals are going to have to support their nursing staff when disgruntled doctors retaliate against them for enforcing said policies. I say it’s time to reward the whistleblowers, not punish them.
The idea of the surgeon as the “Captain of the Ship” is going the way of the manual typewriter and rotary-dial phone. Any person who steps foot in the operating room is responsible for doing whatever it takes to protect the patient. Just as there are bad captains on cruise ships (think of the Costa Concordia incident), there are bad surgeons.
Finally, I believe patients should have a right to videorecord their surgery. I always joke that nurses outside the OR don’t have a clue about what goes on behind those closed doors. If a surgeon is blasting Van Halen instead of the requested meditative music the patient wanted, it might not matter. But we all know what happens to our level of concentration when we talk on the phone, text or play Words with Friends. If videorecording is good enough for our police officers when making stops or arrests, then it’s good enough for healthcare providers in situations where being distracted, even for a few seconds, can maim or kill.
We must put a stop to this grossly negligent practice immediately. This is a more common issue than the healthcare system might be ready to acknowledge. But if Wired (not a healthcare publication) is writing about it, that tells us the problem is more insidious than probably any of us want to believe.
Distracted doctoring, distracted nursing and distracted assisting is only going to get worse if we don’t stop it before the generation who’s never been disconnected takes the helm.
We have one more reason to stay healthy and out of the hospital. Take care of yourself, your life may depend on it. I’m just saying…
Success Is Inside!
P.S. Don’t comment on your personal experiences with distracted doctors – they might be reading this blog during surgery!
