Patient admission for elective surgery

Abstract

The rationale underlying this study was that admission for surgery can be an anxiety producing experience. A descriptive study was designed to answer the following questions: How do nurses conduct the admission of patients for elective surgery? What experiences do patients have of their admission? 50 patients admitted for elective surgery comprised the study sample. Data was collected by patient interviews and non-participant observation of the 'admission procedure'. The results suggest that nurses feature poorly in the admission of patients for elective surgery and are seemingly failing to acknowledge the implications of patient admission and the therapeutic value of the admission procedure as a nursing intervention. Admission appears to be a stressful event for Maltese patients. The organisation of work methods and a lack of information are not at present conducive to lessen the negative effects of admission for surgery. Suggestions are made for improvements in the present situation and for further research to be carried out.