Attitudes towards day-case surgery in Hong Kong Chinese patients

To evaluate attitudes of Chinese patients towards day-case surgery.

Prospective cross-sectional questionnaire survey.

District public hospital, Hong Kong.

Two hundred patients attending a preanaesthetic assessment clinic between 1 January and 30 June 2004 were invited to participate.

Demographic profiles, understanding and attitudes towards day-case surgery, preference for day-case surgery before and after the experience, postoperative adverse effects, and patient satisfaction.

The mean age of the patients was 28 (standard deviation, 19) years. In all 200 respondents completing the survey, 180 preferred day-case surgery. Important reasons for this view were: shorter duration of hospitalisation, dislike of hospital environments, belief that hospitals are highly infectious, need to look after their families, desire to return to work early, and doctors' advice. Small home environments and belief that day-case surgery was unsafe were not important. Respondents who did not prefer day-case surgery stressed the importance of better care available for hospital in-patients, concerns about surgical complications, postoperative nausea and vomiting, and doctors' advice. Only 11% patients complained of postoperative adverse effects. Demographic characteristics and previous day-case surgery experience did not have any effect on patient preferences. However, experiencing a postoperative adverse effect significantly affected the preference (P=0.005) and satisfaction (P=0.001) of respondents for day-case surgery.

Local Chinese patients attending our institution have a high preference for day-case surgery. Postoperative adverse effects might influence the respondents' satisfaction and preference after their surgical experience.