What Is "Enhanced Recovery," and How Can I Do It?

Area of Science:

• Perioperative Medicine
• Surgical Care Improvement

Background:

• Enhanced Recovery (ER) and fast-track protocols have been used for over 20 years in surgical patient management.
• These protocols are widely adopted across surgical specialties due to their proven benefits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review key elements of evidence-based Enhanced Recovery protocols.
• To discuss concepts for establishing successful Enhanced Recovery programs.
• To emphasize the importance of patient-centric outcomes in ER.

Main Methods:

• Review of key elements within successful evidence-based ER protocols.
• Discussion of relevant concepts for initiating ER programs.

Main Results:

• ER protocols are associated with decreased length of stay and fewer complications.
• Patient-centric outcomes like pain control, functional recovery, and patient experience require further consideration.

Conclusions:

• Successful ER programs are built on principles such as early feeding, ambulation, goal-directed fluid therapy, and opiate-sparing analgesia.
• Multi-disciplinary team and patient/family buy-in are crucial for effective ER implementation.