This book is centrally concerned with the formal management of preoperative
anxiety. The vast majority of patients experience varying degrees
of anxiety when entering hospital for surgery and yet little formal intervention
is commonly provided. This is the first book of its kind to be
written for nurses exclusively concerning the complete formal pre- and
postoperative management of anxiety in relation to modern, elective,
adult day surgery. During the early 1970s classic nursing studies suggested
information provision to be crucial for effective inpatient preoperative
anxiety management. However, following such early recommendations
no other formal aspects of psychoeducational care have impacted on
mainstream surgical nursing intervention. Physical aspects of care have
dominated proceedings for the last three decades or more, whereas psychoeducational
aspects have largely remained informal, marginal issues.
Both surgery and anaesthesia have changed dramatically during this period
and nursing intervention must now do likewise.