Our Usual Pre-Operative Procedures

Generally our involvement in preparing you for an operation is a straightforward medical history and physical examination to help determine the best choice of anesthetics for your specific circumstances. We will review specific aspects of your health that may affect your surgical course. This includes any tests, such as blood work, X-rays, EKG, echo studies, etc., that may be pertinent.

In the elective setting we will attempt to either visit you in the hospital or reach you by phone the evening before surgery to discuss your health history, explain the planned anesthetic and answer whatever questions we can.

The day of surgery, it is extremely important that you follow the instructions you have been given regarding fasting and your arrival time at the hospital or surgery center.

Our goal, of course, is to do whatever is needed to meet your needs. At the extremes this may be an extensive consultation weeks ahead to help determine what testing needs to be done and plan an unusual anesthetic for an unusual problem, or it may be a life-saving set of reflex-like procedures in a major trauma setting.

Please see the Frequently Asked Questions section for detailed answers to many common concerns.