The Complete Recovery Room Book

by Anthea Hatfield (Author), Michael Tronson (Contributor), Michael Tronson (Contributor), Anthea Hatfield (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2008

  $3.39

  The care that a patient receives in the first hours after surgery is crucial to minimizing the risk of complications such as heart attacks, pneumonia, and blood clots. As the patient awakes from their drug-induced coma, it takes time for them to metabolize and excrete these drugs, during which period they remain unable to care for themselves, and at increased risk of harm. The body undergoes extreme physiological assault from pain, hypothermia, hypoxia, acid-base disturbance and shifts in blood volume. The recovery room staff must manage these symptoms in both comatose and physiologically unstable patients, and deal with the immediate post-operative care of surgical patients by attending to drips, drains and dressings. It is an environment where many skills and equipment are brought together, and successful development of these units has significantly reduced the number of deaths from preventable conditions. In helping the patient from the high pressure operating theatre to the wards, nurses, surgeons and anaesthetists will be required to manage day-to-day problems, but also make difficult decisions.Previous editions of this book have established it as the definitive guide to setting-up, equipping, staffing, and administering this acute care unit. It includes basic science such as physiology and pharmacology, specific symptoms including pain and vomiting, and has chapters devoted to the unique post-operative needs of individual types of surgery. This new edition brings this important text up to date, including new material on risk management, administration and quality control; expanded sections on anaesthetic practice and infection prevention; and incorporating the recent developments in pain control, nausea and vomiting, care of children, pregnancy, and care of the cardiac patient.

• Used

  Paperback
  2001

  $3.39

  The care that a patient receives in the first hours after surgery is crucial to minimizing the risk of complications such as heart attacks, pneumonia, and blood clots. In spite of this, many hospitals still do not have formally organized recovery rooms. The Complete Recovery Room Book has established itself as the definitive guide on how to establish, equip, staff, and administer this acute care unit. The five years since completion of the previous edition have seen many changes in anaesthetic and surgical techniques, which, in some cases, enable patients to have their operation and be discharged, whether on the same day, or the day after their surgery. Pre-assessment clinics have reduced the incidence of unfit patients presenting for surgery, and this brings fewer unexpected problems to the recovery room. Significant advances from research into pain mechanisms have allowed a better understanding of analgesics and more efficient pain control. Alongside these improvements though, other dangers have emerged, such as the increased risk of diseases like HIV or hepatitis being transmitted, and just recently, latex allergy. The third edition of this book has been heavily revised in order to take account of all these changes and medical advances, though provides an essential, practical source of reference that should be read by all anaesthetists, surgeons, recovery room nurses, and anyone involved in providing postoperative care.