AORN's classic resource for perioperative practice brings together all of the Association's official positions and recommendations in one unique volume--from professional practice standards to laser safety, from competency statements to aseptic technique, from clinical pathways to patient safety. The 2006 edition features revised guidelines for safe medication practices and reuse of single-use devices; eight new position statements approved by the 2005 House of Delegates; and expanded and updated competency statements for the perioperative nurse, the perioperative advanced practice nurse, and the perioperative care coordinator. Strategies to assist perioperative nurses in developing facility-specific policies and procedures are included in new guidance statements on do-not-use abbreviations, ergonomically health workplace practices, development of a patient safety culture, prevention of SARS and human/avian influenza, environmental responsibility, and the role of the health care industry representative in the perioperative setting. Updated content also includes revised recommended practices for counts, maintaining a sterile field, sterilization, tissue banking, and traffic patterns, along with new recommended practices for care and handling of specimens.