Outpatient Surgery Magazine

Surgical Smoke Nearly Killed Me - Subscribe to Outpatient Surgery Magazine - February 2018

Outpatient Surgery Magazine, providing current information on Surgical Services, Surgical Facility Administration, Outpatient Surgery News and Trends, OR Excellence and more.

Issue link: http://outpatientsurgery.uberflip.com/i/940239

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 107 of 128

1 0 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • F E B R U A R U Y 2 0 1 8 Sending Patients Home With Pain Pumps Jim Burger | Contributing Editor Peripheral nerve catheters are your secret weapon in the quest for prolonged post-surgical pain control. Brandon Winchester, MD P atients who are given regional nerve blocks wake up faster, are more alert and have less pain. They need fewer opioids, so they're less likely to have respiratory distress or nausea. Which means they can usually be discharged sooner and start physical therapy sooner. The only problem? Blocks wear off. That's where continuous peripheral nerve catheters and pain pumps can take over. Yes, continuous nerve blocks add a whole new level of complexity for patients, but they can control and dramatically reduce post-surgical pain for several days. When you send patients home with a pump and a little education, they're usually able to get through the toughest post-surgical stretch without relying heavily on opioids. And by recovering comfortably at home, they reduce the burden on providers and the healthcare system in general.

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Outpatient Surgery Magazine - Surgical Smoke Nearly Killed Me - Subscribe to Outpatient Surgery Magazine - February 2018