Parent perceptions of pediatric ambulatory surgery: using family feedback for program evaluation

Pediatric ambulatory surgery programs have grown tremendously during the past decade. However, limited nursing time places severe constraints on the care and education of surgical outpatients. Preoperative teaching, patient support, and postoperative instruction, previously conducted over days, is now completed in several hours. The ambulatory surgical program at Mott Children's Hospital was designed to provide thorough patient and family education, comprehensive patient care, and short-term follow-up. A formal evaluation of the program was conducted to ensure quality care for outpatients. This study evaluated preoperative and discharge preparation, postoperative problems and follow-up, preoperative waiting, stress, and privacy. The sample was composed of 332 families. Of the respondents, 289 (87%) felt very prepared overall for outpatient surgery; 33 families (10%) attended the preoperative tour, and felt significantly better prepared for surgery than families who did not attend; 322 families (97%) felt adequately prepared to very prepared for discharge; 245 families (76%) felt that the recovery time was just right; 40 parents (12%) felt that their children experienced more pain and 34 (10.4%) more nausea and vomiting than expected postoperatively; 54 families called a PACU nurse postoperatively with questions, and 92% rated the call as very helpful; 31 families called the surgical service with concerns, and 61% rated the surgeon as helpful; 83 families (25%) perceived the outpatient experience as being very stressful. Stress correlated significantly with preoperative preparation, preoperative wait, previous outpatient experience, and perceived postoperative pain. Privacy in the environment was rated as fair to poor by 192 families (59%).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)