Attending surgeons should be informed promptly (usually within one hour) of certain changes in the patient’s condition through ongoing communication with the hospital team, which includes residents, PAs, NPs, fellows, and ICU physicians. The team should notify the attending surgeon or his/her designee of significant changes when they occur, regardless of the time of day or day of week. Conditions requiring immediate notification include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Unscheduled return to the OR
- Transfer to ICU
- New Admission
- Rapid Response (RRT)
- Emergency Airway Response
- Code
- Death
Other conditions requiring timely notification:
- Unplanned intubation or ventilator support
- Development of significant neurologic changes
- Development of wound complications
- Medication or treatment errors requiring clinical intervention
- Visit to the Emergency Department (ED)
- Development of any concern by a trainee that a situation is more complicated than he or she can manage
- Discharge from the hospital or ED
- Transfer out of ICU