3 9
M A R C H 2 0 1 4 | O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E
1
Keep the patient updated on schedule
changes. The case before mine ran 45 minutes long. I didn't
have family or friends sitting with me to soak up the time. The
wait seemed like an eternity. Thankfully, the nurses checked in on me
periodically to see if I needed anything, like a blanket or a bathroom
visit.
2
Introduce each member of the surgical
team and shake your patient's hand. Other
than my surgeon and physician anesthesiologist, I didn't know
the members of the medical team who would be caring for me. In
any other professional setting, walking up to and touching a person
without permission or introducing yourself is highly inappropriate. I
appreciated it when the team members told me their names and what
their roles were in the procedure.
3
Keep the pre-operative area quiet and
peaceful. Having surgery is tremendously emotional and
stressful. The last thing I wanted to hear among the surgical
staff was a review of the football game the night before or a debate
over the latest news from Washington.
4
Keep the patient warm in the pre-opera-
tive holding area. I hate being cold. I have self-diag-
nosed myself with Raynaud's because I actually feel pain when
I'm cold. As you can imagine, when I was dressed in an OR gown, I
was uncomfortably cold. But I was given an abundant supply of warm
blankets in the pre-operative holding area, which was fabulous. The
OR bed was pre-warmed with the warming blanket before I entered,
and it was immediately placed over me when I got onto the table.
Being kept warm was such a comfort.
F I R S T P E R S O N
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