Perceptions of perioperative care in the UK

Perioperative care focuses on providing integrated, multidisciplinary, patient-centred care from the moment surgery is contemplated through to full recovery. 

Having searched 10 bibliographic databases and screened more than 3,000 articles, we summarise learning from 41 UK studies. 

Key Messages 

Our rapid review fills a gap by compiling the (little) published data that exists about patient and professional perceptions of perioperative care and multidisciplinary working in surgery in the UK. The ‘take away messages’ from our review are:  

•    Healthcare professionals such as surgeons, anaesthetists, hospital nurses and general practitioners appear to support key principles of perioperative care, such as multidisciplinary working; holistic pathways of care before, during and after surgery; person-centred care; prehabilitation and early supported discharge from hospital.

•    Surgical patients generally support the principles of perioperative care and value components such as shared decision-making and prehabilitation. They believe that there are benefits from early discharge from hospital; but suggest that more could be done to provide information and support in hospital after surgery and after discharge to help them avoid and manage complications and readmission. Patients felt that primary and secondary care could work together in a more seamless manner. 

•    Healthcare professionals believe that factors that may facilitate of perioperative care include time and funding to build and test pathways; more opportunities for professionals from a range of specialties and sectors to build relationships and work together and more evidence and promotion about the benefits of perioperative care for patients, professionals, population health and healthcare systems.