GIRFT has added further guidance to its series helping to streamline preoperative processes to maximise theatre efficiency, with a new resource focusing on preoperative assessment (POA) of patients undergoing interventional radiology procedures.
The new guidance, which covers IR procedures performed under local anaesthetic (LA) that do not require anaesthetic or airway support, is relevant to POA clinical and operational teams, booking and scheduling teams, and theatre and ward teams.
It offers a practical approach towards reducing unnecessary testing for patients undergoing IR procedures, unnecessary escalation or referral, and reducing cancellations on the day.
The new guidance offers key best practice principles covering targeted testing while accounting for the risks and complications associated with LA IR procedures. It also includes advice on:
- the role of the health professional for POA in IR;
- service, governance overview and audit;
- children and young people (CYP);
- sustainable service provision.
The guide also features an IR POA decision tool, summarising the guidance and helping users to ensure that each step of the assessment and planning process is addressed.
Interventional radiology is used for both the diagnosis and treatment of patients. IR teams deliver minimally-invasive treatments under image guidance for a wide range of pathologies, using devices such as catheters and wires to guide the operator. As such, IR has become a key subspecialty in improving patient outcomes.
Through our preoperative assessment (POA) non-medical network and on-site reviews, GIRFT has identified unwarranted variation and challenges in preoperative screening and diagnostic pathways, including the pathway for IR at POA. Such variations can lead to postponements and on-the-day cancellations, which delay planned surgery.
This new guide is part of a wider GIRFT series designed to support providers to streamline their preoperative screening and diagnostic pathways. The aim is to ensure testing is appropriately targeted, in accordance with current guidance and evidence, to help prevent unnecessary postponements and avoid cancellations. This, in turn, will improve patient flow and surgical outcomes.
Other guidance in the series includes:
Support guide for the implementation of early screening, risk assessment and optimisation >
Guide to preoperative testing: NT-ProBNP and echocardiography >
Guide to preoperative testing: local anaesthetic >
Guide to preoperative testing: urine testing before elective urological surgery >
Guide to preoperative testing: MRSA >
Preoperative decolonisation interventions and washes before elective surgery>
Management of atrial fibrillation at preoperative assessment >
