Anaesthetists
- Specialist doctors
- Responsible for your anaesthetic and pain relief
- They will stay with you throughout the operation
- Plan your care, if needed, in the ICU, HDU, OIR etc.
General anaesthetic
- When you are have major surgery you are likely to have a general anaesthetic
- Your anaesthetist will see you before surgery, to ask you about your health, allergies, previous anaesthetics and explain the anaesthetic plan to you
- In theatre, you will get a cannula in your forearm or hand, which will be used to put medications in to get you to sleep
- You will be usually asked to breathe some oxygen before you go to sleep
- When you are asleep you will have a breathing tube in your throat – this will be gone before you wake up.
Pain
- Pain is common after major surgery
- We need your pain under control to enable you to move and cough
- Inpatient pain team – team of specialists who manage pain relief in the hospital
- Don’t be afraid to ask for painkillers.
Pain relief – epidural and spinal injections
- Both involve an injection of local anaesthetic in your back
- Epidural catheters can provide pain relief for several days postop
- Usually performed awake for safety reasons.
Pain relief options – PCA
- “Patient Controlled Analgesia”
- Medication pump which gives a small dose of strong pain killer IV when the button is pressed
- Nurses will keep a close eye on you and check your oxygen levels and blood pressure regularly.
Anaesthesia and pain relief options
- All options have side effects and complications, like all medical procedures
- Factors such as medical history sometimes suggest that a particular option may be safer
- Your anaesthetist will explain in detail the options on the morning of surgery and make a decision, with your input and assent.