Editor's Note Higher doses of anesthesia did not affect risk of postoperative delirium in a study of more than 1,000 heart surgery patients, according to a June 10 United Press International (UPI) article on study findings published in JAMA. The research included 1,140 heart surgery patients, half of whom had…
Editor's Note Inspired by a leader in the postanesthesia care department (PACU)? Here’s a chance to provide well-deserved recognition from the entire perioperative community. Whether in an outpatient setting or a hospital, ensuring successful surgery requires attention to more than what happens in the OR. That’s why OR Manager’s annual…
Critical assessment and rapid response are essentials skills for perioperative staff members, and that goes double for perioperative leadership. Patient-centered leadership is a must. Like the OR, the postanesthesia care unit (PACU, formerly referred to as the “recovery room”) is a critical care area plagued by an influx of new…
Editor's Note Patients with a history of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have a higher risk of delirium after high-complexity surgeries but not after those of moderate complexity, according to findings published in the March issue of Anesthesia and Analgesia. The study included 46,352 hospital patients older than 60 years who…
Editor's Note Most surgical studies still do not report movement-evoked postoperative pain despite the recommendations of expert consensus groups, according to findings published November 27 in Anesthesiology. Researchers came to essentially the same conclusion upon re-evaluating the assessment of pain at rest and movement-evoked pain in 2011. In this updated…
Editor's Note A recent study suggests a single dose of intrathecal morphine provides long-lasting analgesia and reduces the need for postoperative systemic administration of opioids after painful open urological procedures. The Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing published the data January 31. Intrathecal opioid administration is an attractive technique in these surgeries…
Editor's Note This article by nurse researchers at Washington University in St Louis and University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, shows how mentorship can positively affect role transitioning from an experienced RN to a novice acute care nurse practitioner (ACNP) in a cardiothoracic ICU. The authors note the differences between preceptors,…