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Significant changes have occurred in United States health care delivery. One method that has evolved to meet the needs and expectations of patients preparing for surgery is the use of preadmission programs.
Customer perspectives, effectiveness, and patient satisfaction have been used to enhance positive patient experiences within the context of continuous quality improvement.
Escalating health care costs have created an incentive to reduce patients' length of stay. Besides controlling costs, health care facilities need to be astute in providing quality care to meet the needs and expectations of patients. Preadmission programs offer same-day admission surgery, which has improved bed utilization.
The patient's first perception of his/her surgical experience begins with the preadmission process. The health care consumer's choice of a hospital is influenced by perceptions of the quality of care received. Preoperative nursing assessments and patient education are vital elements in providing an effective preadmission program and ensuring quality care. It is imperative that patients be involved in the evaluation process. As health care professionals, we need to evaluate the patient's clinical outcomes, as well as meet the patient's expectations to measure the effectiveness of a program.
Client satisfaction is a critical factor in program effectiveness. Effectiveness is based on patient expectations and whether or not objective goals are met.
Preadmission Programs
For years, nursing research has attempted to measure the effect of preoperative education on postoperative outcomes. Patients often block out preoperative teaching that is done immediately before surgery because their levels of anxiety and fear are so high.
Stress is a normal reaction for patients entering the hospital due to the loss of control over one's life and fear of dreaded events with uncertain outcomes. Therefore, the effectiveness of preoperative instruction can be increased when the timing of instruction is taken into consideration.
Preadmission programs have a threefold purpose. First, preadmission programs provide health care institutions an opportunity to implement creative and cost-effective programs in response to today's rapid health care changes. As managed care contracts and prospective payment plans emerge, hospitals will experience declines in the number of inpatient days. Economically, the goal is to provide all mandatory screening on an outpatient basis and save the cost of overnight stays that are more costly and possibly anxiety producing for the patient.
Second,...