COST Medical Ethics and Law 4

Question 1

What is the correct way to fix an error in a paper surgical record?

Accepted Answer

Draw a single line through it, write the correction, and initial and date it

Answer

A single line keeps the original entry legible, preserving the record's legal integrity.

Question 2

The primary purpose of an incident (occurrence) report after a dropped intraocular lens is to:

Accepted Answer

Support quality improvement and risk management

Answer

Incident reports are internal risk-management tools used to find causes and prevent recurrence, and they are not filed in the chart.

Question 3

The Universal Protocol, which includes site marking and the time-out, was established by which organization to prevent wrong-site surgery?

Accepted Answer

The Joint Commission

Answer

The Joint Commission's Universal Protocol requires pre-procedure verification, site marking, and a time-out.

Question 4

Operating on the wrong eye is classified by the National Quality Forum as a:

Accepted Answer

Never event (serious reportable event)

Answer

Wrong-site surgery is a 'never event,' a serious, largely preventable error that should never happen.

Question 5

A surgical technologist breaks sterile technique while no one else notices. Reporting and correcting the break demonstrates:

Accepted Answer

Surgical conscience

Answer

Surgical conscience is the personal commitment to admit and correct breaks in asepsis whether or not anyone saw them.

COST - Certified Ophthalmic Surgical Technologist Practice Test