The nurse in a hair transplant operating room

Abstract

Currently, hair transplant surgeries are increasing exponentially. Since it is one of the most demanded services by the male public, largely due to the fact that having hair is perceived as a sign of youth, attractiveness and even labor and social success.

The increase of these surgeries, increases a demand for nursing staff, and it is necessary that nurses who are in these operating rooms have sufficient training, skills and abilities necessary to perform their work in this operating room, without forgetting the specific nursing care to these patients, as they are very long surgeries, (usually have a duration of 6 to 8 hours) there are several changes of surgical positions, as well as the specific preparation of the patient in each surgical time.

The type of activities to be carried out by the nurse in these surgeries are own activities, such as those related to surgical positions and patient comfort, and multidisciplinary activities such as administration of medication, collaboration in the extraction and follicular implantation, maintenance and classification of follicular units and performing the cure.

In addition to the aforementioned, the nurse also carries out the registration of the circulating sheet, where everything that happens in the operating room will be registered, personnel involved in the surgery, beginning and end of surgery, beginning of extraction and beginning of implantation, ischemia times of follicular units, etc... in addition to carrying out together with the rest of the team the "check list" of the surgery.

Hair transplantation is a clean type of surgery, which does not require a sterile operating room environment. It is usually performed in a consultation room prepared to perform minor outpatient surgery, and can be performed with different techniques. In this case I will refer to the "FUE" technique, minimally invasive hair restoration surgery for androgenetic alopecia. This technique has several advantages, among them is that it does not leave scars, has a faster healing time, less downtime and also requires less staff in the operating room.

The basic team for performing this surgery consists of a hair surgeon, a nurse, who performs the work of circulating and instrumentalist-assistant, and a TCAE trained and trained in hair transplantation.

It is an outpatient surgery, in which the patient spends many hours lying down, with a prone decubitus position, right lateral decubitus, left lateral decubitus and another supine position. During the extraction there will be a moment in which the patient will take the left lateral decubitus position and another one in right lateral decubitus, to facilitate the extraction, then we will facilitate the positioning of the patient by placing pillows between the legs.

Once the extraction is done, the patient will change his position to supine decubitus and fowler's position, and the protections corresponding to this position will be placed.

The work of the nurse in positioning the patient is essential for the comfort of the patient during surgery and to facilitate the surgery in the extraction and implantation of the follicle.

Their participation in the reception and preparation of the patient, preparation of the operating room and materials, as well as in the extraction, maintenance and implantation of follicular units are fundamental tasks to be carried out in a hair surgery operating room.

After surgery and implantation, the patient will be given subsequent instructions on the care to be carried out at home.

On the other hand, team work is very important, since it will favor the patient's safety, the decrease in the ischemia time of the follicles and the success of the transplant.

The nurse plays a very relevant role in a hair transplant operating room, assuming both autonomous and collaborative functions within a multidisciplinary team, essential for the successful achievement of the expected objectives.

Mª del Carmen García Retorta