Preop Assessment Area

Shortly after your arrival to the Day Surgery Center, you will be called into the Preoperative Assessment Area by our nursing staff. You will be asked to remove all clothing, including undergarments and jewelry. We will provide you with a gown, robe, cap, and slippers that you will wear during your stay. You will be given a personal locker in which you will place your belongings. The key can be secured to your identification bracelet or given to your escort.

Dentures, hearing aides, glasses, and contact lenses will be secured immediately prior to going into the OR. During certain procedures you may be permitted/required to keep these items.

Our nursing staff will discuss your medical/surgical history, take your vital signs, and answer your questions. The staff will attempt to alleviate any anxiety you may have and give you an idea of what to expect on the day of your procedure. Our staff is aware that their patients will be spending a relatively short time at the hospital and that pre- and post-surgery communication and supportive care is extremely important.

If you wish, your escort may join you in your preoperative assessment room after you have discussed confidential matters with representatives of your surgical team.

Any changes in the OR schedule will be communicated to you and your family/guardian/significant other as quickly as possible.

THE STAFF
The staff of the Day Surgery Center includes a team of clinically expert, caring people with backgrounds in critical care, inpatient and outpatient surgery, emergency medicine, and other specialized areas of inpatient nursing.

As a team, their level of competency and sensitivity provides a standard of care and expertise that patients deserve and appreciate.

ANESTHESIA
Many outpatient surgical procedures are performed with epidural, general, or local anesthesia. Faculty anesthesiologists with experience in ambulatory surgery, care for patients at the Day Surgery Center and are well prepared to deal with any possible medical complications with the resources available in a tertiary care facility. NYU faculty anesthesiologists realize that even the most minor surgery can be stressful physically and mentally. Our specialists guide patients through a safe recovery, and can help with pain management in the days and weeks following a procedure. If anesthesia assistance is planned for your procedure, your anesthesiologist will review your personal history with you. Based on your history and procedure, he/she will provide you with the appropriate anesthesia options. You will again be provided the time that you need to ask questions about your anesthetic care.

CONSENT
If your operative consent has not been obtained in the physician office or in Pre-Admission Testing, you will complete this with a member from the surgical team in the preoperative assessment area.

PEDIATRIC PATIENTS
Having a surgical procedure can be especially trying for children and their parents. To help make the experience more comfortable for our pediatric patients, children and their families have their own waiting area-a playroom to keep them occupied and comfortable prior to surgery. Our pediatric observation room serves as an area for some children who require a quieter setting. In addition, specific OR times are available for pediatric patients.

The NYU Hospitals Center Child Life Program representative is available to help parents understand what the surgical process entails. Families rest easy knowing that a telephone hotline provides answers to questions about their child's procedure both pre- and postoperatively.

Our playroom provides a more favorable environment for our younger patients. Parents/Guardian must remain on the unit if the patient is a minor. Please wait in the adult escort waiting area when children are in the operating room. Parents/Guardian are required to be with the pediatric patient for the entire postoperative recovery room period.