Having had the dubious pleasure of performing my first surgical airway this year, here are some of my take-home points:
1. Preparation is key – if you haven’t thought about a surgical airway, haven’t palpated the anatomy and/or haven’t checked your kit, you won’t get the airway secured in time.
2. There will be blood – so i) wear protection ii) think of this as a tactile procedure after the first incision – practice doing it with your eyes shut/blindfolded.
3. The biggest hurdle is mental – think about a surgical airway before you proceed down any airway intervention and discuss it with your team. Give yourself permission to move to a “Plan D” if Plans A, B & C haven’t worked. Once you begin the procedure, the technical skill is relatively easy.
Stacy
Having had the dubious pleasure of performing my first surgical airway this year, here are some of my take-home points:
1. Preparation is key – if you haven’t thought about a surgical airway, haven’t palpated the anatomy and/or haven’t checked your kit, you won’t get the airway secured in time.
2. There will be blood – so i) wear protection ii) think of this as a tactile procedure after the first incision – practice doing it with your eyes shut/blindfolded.
3. The biggest hurdle is mental – think about a surgical airway before you proceed down any airway intervention and discuss it with your team. Give yourself permission to move to a “Plan D” if Plans A, B & C haven’t worked. Once you begin the procedure, the technical skill is relatively easy.
Stacy