Postoperative care

Abstract

The aim of postoperative care is to provide the patient with as quick, painless and safe a recovery from surgery as possible. In the immediate postoperative period the patient is nursed in a recovery area using one-to-one nursing and continuous monitoring. The role of the recovery nurse is to ensure that the patient is protecting their airway, breathing freely and perfusing adequately (airway, breathing and circulation). The recovery nurse should also monitor the patient’s pain as the anaesthetic wears off and ensure that there are no early complications developing, such as bleeding from the wound or loss of distal circulation and/or sensation. Blood pressure, pulse and oxygen saturation are therefore monitored regularly and the results charted. Trends seen on these charts reassure the recovery nurse that the patient is recovering well or warn that a complication is developing (Summary box 20.1).