Patient and family education in the ambulatory surgery setting

Ambulatory surgery reduces the time nurses can spend with patients, increases the responsibilities that patients must assume for their own care, and requires that family members or friends provide support and care soon after the patient's surgery. Such changes in the surgical process make effective and comprehensive education a particularly essential component of the nursing care process in ambulatory surgery programs. The educational process mimics the nursing process. After the patient's learning needs are assessed, a plan of action must be devised that individualizes the teaching plan to the needs of the specific patient and home caregivers. The patient must be motivated to learn and to comply with certain self-care instructions. Nurses play a pivitol role both in teaching and in evaluating the effects of that teaching for ambulatory surgical patients and their families.