The quality of anesthesia care in outpatient pediatric surgery

Flavia A. Orange; Leonardo S. C. Guerra; Camila A. Moura; Maria B. Ledo; Raphaella A. M. L. Fernandes; Tania C. M. Couceiro

Volume : VIII, Issue : VIII, August - 2018

The quality of anesthesia care in outpatient pediatric surgery

Flavia A. Orange, Leonardo S. C. Guerra, Camila A. Moura, Maria B. Ledo, Raphaella A. M. L. Fernandes, Tania C. M. Couceiro

Abstract :

Background: User satisfaction is a relevant factorwhen assessing the quality of healthcare services.This study evaluated satisfaction with anesthesia care in children undergoing outpatient surgery at the Instituto de Medicina Integral Prof. Fernando Figueira (IMIP) in northeastern Brazil between August 2014 and Feuary 2015.Methods: This cross–sectional study included307 children aged ≤14 years. Children with coexisting diseases or neurological disorders were excluded. Patients and parents/guardians were interviewed seven days after surgery regarding theiroverall satisfaction, information provided on anesthesia and preoperative fasting, use of preanesthetic medication, information given to parents/guardians regarding their child’s transferal to the post–anesthesia care unit (PACU),permission toaccompanytheir child in the PACU, and the occurrence of adverse events. Frequency tables were constructed for categorical variables. Numerical variables were described as means and standard deviations. Significance was established at p<0.05.Results: Overall, 76.9% of parents/guardians stated that they had been givenno information on the anesthesia procedure and 58%had not been informed about preoperative tests. Only 11.7% of children received preanesthetic medication and 73.94% of parents/guardians accompanied the child in the PACU. Adverse events were reported by 29%, with the most common beingvomiting (7.2%). Overall295 parents/guardians (96.09%) declared themselves satisfied.Of the children who could be interviewed, 37.5% feared the anesthesia, 47.5% had met the anesthetist and 102 (62.57%) remembered that someone had explained the procedure to them preoperatively. Ninety–eight children (59.39%) expressedsatisfaction with the anesthetic procedure. Conclusions: Satisfaction was high among parents/guardians but lower among the children interviewed.