Practice and acceptance of day-care surgery in a semi-urban Nigerian hospital

Abstract

Objective: To determine the acceptability and practicability of day-care surgery in a semi-urban area of Nigeria. Design: A twelve-month prospective study. Setting: Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, Nigeria. Patients: Sixty seven consecutive patients with ASA I-II status and aged three months to 97 years were studied. Intervention: Patients were operated as day-cases using general or local anaesthesia. Main outcome measures: Practicability, post-operative problems and acceptability. Results: The mean age of patients studied was 27.26 years (SD 23.89), with males accounting for 61% of the 67 cases. Fifty eight per cent and 42% had general and local anaesthesia respectively. While all patients had post-operative support from family members, less than seven per cent had access to telephone or family doctor services. About 80% of the patients lived within 10km from the hospital. Intermediate operations accounted for 60% of the cases, while minor ones accounted for 40%. The mean operating time was 30 minutes. Post-operative pain was the only significant problem encountered. This, however, decreased in the patients with time. Complication rate was 10.5%. Conclusion: A significant number of patients accepted and approved of the day stay surgery. Medical and surgical practitioners in semi-urban regions are encouraged and charged to accept the practice of short stay surgery.