Elective Care BOASTs

These BOASTs are short standards documents that are trauma-related and produced by the BOA’s Orthopaedic Committee. They are downloadable from our website and can be printed for display in hospitals. You can find our full list of Elective BOASTs below.

The Safe Use of Intraoperative Tourniquets

• October 2021
• Local tissue damage is a significant potential consequence of tourniquet use, particularly in vulnerable patients. All users should be aware of strategies for the prevention, diagnosis and management of tourniquet related injuries and that their early appreciation is imperative. This may be particularly challenging in patients undergoing regional anaesthesia and in patients unable to communicate adequately.

Providing a Continuous Safe Elective Orthopaedic Environment 

• February 2021
• This is the BOA's first elective care BOAST: we know that a sufficient and stable bed base is essential for effective year round orthopaedic care and minimising adverse events which can have catastrophic consequences.  ‘Providing a Continuous Safe Elective Orthopaedic Environment’ discusses the principles underlying our need for resources often called ‘Ring-fenced beds’ and highlights the standards we expect to deliver. As such, this BOAST is relevant for much of our elective work load and we intend for this to be shared amongst departments and with managers.