Airway adjuncts should be available in the post-anaesthesia care unit (PACU) to minimise the incidence of upper airway obstruction that may lead to post obstructive pulmonary oedema and severe hypoxaemia.131
If a patient has known visual or hearing impairment or wears dentures, then their corrective lenses/hearing aid/dentures should be readily accessible and available postoperatively.197
All institutions should have protocols and the necessary facilities for managing postoperative care and should review and update these regularly.192
The following protocols should be held and easily accessible for:
There should be a named lead consultant for the PACU (see Glossary).185
Processes for the communication and implementation of patient safety alerts should be in place.
Patients should be transferred to the ward, the postoperative care environment or the critical care unit accompanied by two members of staff, at least one of whom should be suitably trained to locally agreed standards.201 The anaesthetic record, recovery and prescription charts together with the postoperative plan, should accompany the patient and be clearly communicated to the receiving ward nurse.
Handover, including on moving to the postoperative care environment or to the ICU, should always be to a member of staff who is competent to care for the patient at that time, and this should be clearly documented.202
