Lights, Camera, Nursing!

The Nurse’s Role in a Live Surgical Webcast

In March 2003, BWH debuted a first-of-its-kind surgical webcast, broadcasting a procedure involving an innovative technique used to remove cancerous tumors live via the hospital’s Internet site. Five additional surgeries have since been broadcast, including the most recent procedure, a minimally invasive total knee replacement (TKR) that took place in May.

While the focus of each webcast is on the surgeon performing the procedure, nurses play a distinct and vital role in each surgery. BWH Nurse recently caught up with the nursing team involved in the latest webcast—Mike Bickerstaff, RN, nurse-in-charge; Elizabeth McDaniel, RN; Judith Nagle, RN; Holly Sousa, RN, OR nurses; and Scott Masalin, surgical technician, for the BWH Department of Orthopedic Surgery.

While this highly specialized team of nurses has met the challenges of many TKR surgeries, this was the first live web cast for each of them. On the day of the scheduled procedure, Bickerstaff was the first to arrive, assigning nurses to the patient case and case cart preparation. “A typical TKR surgery requires two nurses—one who scrubs in and one who circulates,” said Bickerstaff. “However, four nurses—two scrubbing and two circulating—were used as part of the webcast to deal with the added complexities of web production.”

Following the arrival of all team members, the nurses worked together to complete pre-surgery preparations, including the arrangement of equipment in the surgical pod, the review of surgical instruments and the sterilization of all instruments and equipment to be used. The team then met with surgeon Dr. Wolfgang Fitz to review last-minute details prior to the procedure.

During the surgery, Masalin and Nagle, who scrubbed in, worked to anticipate the needs of the surgeon, handing him instruments and ensuring the procedure ran smoothly. Meanwhile, Sousa and McDaniel, the circulators, worked to ensure patient safety, keeping close watch over the cameramen and their equipment to prevent any disruptions in the flow of the surgery.

The procedure went off without a hitch and was a great success. “I am so proud and impressed by this team and their professional, competent approach to nursing at BWH. They make my job that much easier,” said Bickerstaff. “It was a great honor to represent BWH demonstrating surgical best practices for a worldwide audience, “added Sousa. The nursing role is integral to such procedures going well, and it is a pleasure working with a dedicated, top-notch nursing team.”