All surgical procedures and anaesthetic interventions carry an element of risk. Your overall health status, underlying medical conditions and your general physical fitness significantly influence the chances of you achieving a successful outcome and minimising the risk of complications associated with your procedure.
Typically, most people don’t meet their anaesthetist until just prior to their operation. Unfortunately, this provides your anaesthetist with only limited time to make considered assessments of your health prior to putting you to sleep, let alone an opportunity to recommend any treatment to ensure you are in best physical condition.
At Recovery Medical, we provide a comprehensive pre-surgical assessment and optimisation service to assist your surgeon and anaesthetist to provide best quality management whilst under their care. On referral from your surgeon or other care provider, we conduct a comprehensive evaluation of your health and fitness for surgery, providing a comprehensive report and liaison service with your referring practitioner. In addition, we can make recommendations for any health interventions that may place you in a better position to recover well from your operation.
Pre-surgical services provided by Recovery Medical involves two main parts – assessment and management. These processes are more than just general health management, they specifically relate to the health concerns that influence your chances of an adverse outcome from a surgical procedure or anaesthetic. For example, where having crooked teeth and a stiff jaw might not be a great health concern for daily life, it might represent a significant issue for your anaesthetist to obtain a safe unobstructed airway. Knowing about this in advance ensures that your health care providers are alerted to the concern and have a chance to respond and plan appropriately.
Pre-surgical assessment involves an overall health evaluation with specific focus on medical conditions and physical fitness as it relates to anaesthesia and your pending operation. Assessment is best conducted well in advance of your operation to allow further evaluations or health optimisation if required. Examples of pre-surgical assessments include consideration of medications you take, heart and lung conditions, airway evaluation, cervical spine mobility and obesity. Evaluation of blood tests, blood pressure, body mass and composition, heart ECG, lung spirometry and other investigations are conducted where required. If you have a chronic health condition we may seek further information or advice from your General Practitioner or Specialist. If a significant health concern is identified, we will liaise early with your surgeon or anaesthetist so they are made aware of your condition and to coordinate further care under their advice. The ultimate outcome of a pre-anaesthetic assessment is to provide your anaesthetist with all the information they require to deliver you best quality care.
Pre-surgical optimisation involves the treatment and management of any health conditions that may impact upon your upcoming procedure. Examples of this include iron supplementation for anaemia, blood sugar control for diabetes, weight loss for obesity, smoking cessation programs, physical conditioning and the use of CPAP for people with obstructive sleep apnoea. The earlier you have these conditions evaluated, the longer you have to address these health concerns under the supervision of your health care providers. Where necessary, we will liaise with your General Practitioner or make appropriate referral for evaluation by a Specialist to optimise your health prior to surgery. Recovery Medical is also able to offer a range of pre-operative health management services within our facility, including weight management, exercise physiology, physiotherapy, pain management and physical conditioning programs.
To learn more, contact us by phone on 3831 9777 or by email reception@recoverymedical.com.au