Early ambulation: an ugly phrase for a beautiful idea

The present study was undertaken to assess the effect of scheduled ambulation of selected post-operative outcomes between control and experimental groups in two hospitals of Bangalore; scores of post-operative outcomes of the two groups were also associated with demographic variables. The sample of 60 major abdominal surgery patients admitted in two hospitals was subjected to a rating scale of 14 demographic items and 35 items on parameters of post-operative outcomes like pain, fatigue, urine retention etc. The results showed that scheduled ambulation was effective in reducing the severity of selected post-operative outcomes.