The effects of postanesthesia care unit visits on anxiety in surgical patients

The purpose of this study was to conduct a modified replication of a previous study designed to determine the preoperative and postoperative postanesthesia care unit (PACU) differences in levels of anxiety between patients who receive visitors in the PACU and patients who do not receive visitors. Differences between groups regarding memory of the PACU and the desire to have visitors were determined. A nonprobability sample of 40 adult patients scheduled for elective surgery was used to examine the differences in visual analog scale (VAS) scores of anxiety 1 to 2 hours before surgery, in the PACU, and 20 to 36 hours after surgery between the control and treatment groups. The State Anxiety Inventory, Form Y-1, and the VAS were administered to all participating patients to measure anxiety associated with surgical procedures. A self-report questionnaire was used to measure memory of the PACU and the desire for PACU visitors. The findings supported those of a previous study that indicated that the presence of family members and significant others in the PACU helped to decrease anxiety in surgical patients. It also supports patients' wishes to have visitors in the PACU after future surgeries.