Elective Pre-Operative Care: Remote and Immediate Preparation, Assessment, Investigations and Patient Education

A surgical nursing lecture on the care given before planned surgery, divided into the remote preparation that runs from weeks out to twelve hours before the operation and the immediate preparation in the last twelve hours. It covers the assessment and the investigations, the observations with four-hourly vital signs to detect infection and any fall or rise in blood pressure, nutrition with the carbohydrates, proteins and vitamins A and C that support healing, and the psychological preparation - explaining the procedure and the theatre environment to allay anxiety and arranging spiritual care with the patient's permission.