| A Survey of Patients' Thoughts on Anesthesia and Anesthesiologists following Experience with Anesthesia. |
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Won Kyoung Kwon, Tae Yun Sung, Yong Jun Huh, Kyoung Ok Kim |
1Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, College of Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea.
2Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Goyang, Korea. pissces@medimail.co.kr |
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| Abstract |
BACKGROUND
The image and status of anesthesiology as a medical specialty in the eyes of the general public has been a problem. This study assessed the patients' thoughts on anesthesiologists and their preoperative concerns and examined the influence of any previous anesthetic experience on their apprehension. METHODS: One hundred thirty-nine patients undergoing elective surgical procedures were surveyed with a questionnaire regarding their thoughts on anesthesiologists and their preoperative concerns at preoperative visits. The results were analyzed in terms of a previous experience with anesthesia. RESULTS: Sixty-five patients had previous experience with anesthesia (Group 1), and 74 patients had none (Group 2). Seventy-one percent of patients in Group 1 and 80% in Group 2 reported that a physician-anesthesiologist was in charge of their anesthesia. Regarding the responsibility for the patients' safety during the surgical procedures, 83% of patients in Group 1 and 82% in Group 2 reported that the anesthesiologists were responsible for the patients' well-being. Fifty-seven percent of patients in Group 1 and 58% in Group 2 reported that the anesthesiologists were responsible for their safe recovery from the anesthesia. The most frequent preoperative apprehensions were postoperative pain (57% in Group 1 and 62% in Group 2) and the risk of not waking up from the anesthesia (60% in Group 1 and 57% in Group 2). There were no significant differences between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Passive learning from previous anesthetic experience does not affect the patients' thoughts on the anesthesiologists and their preoperative concerns. |
| Key Words:
anesthesia; preoperative visit |
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