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The care of an individual patient should be delivered on a one to one basis until the patient is able to maintain their own airway, has respiratory and cardiovascular stability and is able to communicate appropriately. All recovery units should be staffed to a level that allows this to be routine practice and the recovery staff should not have any...

A minimum of two members of staff should be present (of whom at least one should be a registered practitioner) when there is a patient in the recovery unit who does not fulfil the criteria for discharge to the ward. If this level of staffing cannot be assured, an anaesthetist should stay with the patient until satisfied that the patient...

There should be an anaesthetist or a professional with suitably qualified airway skills who is available for patients in the recovery unit within two minutes.^185,187

Adequate provision through job planning and service demand should be made for an anaesthetist-led acute pain service.^188,189

Adequate provision within job plans should be made for a member of the anaesthetic team to visit the following groups of patients within 24 hours following their operation:

• those graded as American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status 3, 4 or 5
• those receiving epidural analgesia on a general ward 
• those discharged from the recovery unit with cardiovascular invasive monitoring...

All patients who have received an anaesthetic affecting central nervous system function and/or a loss of protective reflexes should remain where anesthetised until recovered or be transported safely (with care and monitoring as indicated below) to a specifically designated recovery location for post-anaesthesia recovery.¹⁸²

Operating theatre complexes require a dedicated recovery unit. This unit should be located in the operating theatre department and should be separate from the department’s admission area. It should have a separate access for transfer of patients to the ward.^185,190

The size, design and facilities of the recovery unit must meet the Department of Health and Social Care guidelines.¹⁹⁰

The bed spaces should allow unobstructed access for trolleys, x-ray equipment, resuscitation trolleys and clinical staff. The facility should be open plan, allowing each recovery bay to be observed but with the provision of curtains for patient privacy.¹⁷²

Oxygen and suction should be present in every recovery bay and ideally delivered by pipeline.¹⁸⁵