[The preoperative anaesthetic visit]

Anaesthetists often visit their patients in exceptional situations characterised by preoperative anxiety or distress. Therefore, even brief contact with the patient can be considered intense and meaningful. The initial preoperative anaesthetic visit is the beginning of the relationship between patient and anaesthetist, and should help to explain the planned anaesthetic technique. Preoperative anaesthetic visits are intense and last for 20 minutes on average. They should assert a professional approach to the patient's emotions, particularly to preoperative anxiety, and a structured and clear collection of information including the past history of the patient. These visits should also provide information about the anaesthesia itself and instructions for the patient with respect to the perioperative period. Communication about the side effects and risks of anaesthetic techniques, and the discussion of potential alternatives are mandatory. Worldwide, courts of law increasingly require a documented discussion between the anaesthetist and patient based on risk-benefit evidence. Today, there is in general a shift away from decisions made solely by physicians, reflecting an increased respect for the autonomy of the patient towards a model of shared decision-making and informed choice. Ideally, the preoperative visit follows the four key habits of highly effective clinicians, i.e., to rapidly establish a rapport with the patient and provide an agenda for the visit, to explore the patient's perspectives and expectations, to demonstrate empathy, and to focus on the end of the visit with providing information and including the patient in the decision-making process. Visits are then concluded upon obtaining informed consent from the patient.