This post is part of a series exploring the issues of ethics in anesthesiology practice. When considering the ethics of anesthesiology practice, most people would think in the present tense. However, this aspect of anesthesiology has a storied history that…
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Value Analysis and Anesthesia Management
As discussed previously, the Perioperative Surgical Home (PSH) model has vast potential to disrupt the standards of anesthesia care. In a follow-up to that discussion, proposals in the anesthesiology community are now suggesting a value-based strategy to address efficiency and…
Recent Advances in Anesthesia
It would be difficult and presumptuous to try to cover all the recent advances in the field of anesthesia in one article, but a few new developments which have changed the way we manage our anesthetics deserve mention. Those included…
Management of Postdural Puncture Headache
Postdural Puncture Headache (PDPHA), as defined by the International Headache Society, is any headache that develops within 5 days of dural puncture and is not better explained by another cause. While the classic symptoms of PDPHA highlight a positional component…
Smoking Cessation in Perioperative Period
Anesthesiologists are likely to encounter many patients who smoke cigarettes over their career. Smoking is an independent risk factor for surgical complications, even after accounting for its contribution to such chronic diseases as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and heart…
Choosing a Hospital vs. a Surgery Center
With outpatient procedures becoming increasingly commonplace, patients now have a variety of surgical settings available to them. Deciding between a surgical center and a hospital is an important decision, and determining which option is best warrants careful consideration. Surgery centers…
Shifting to a New Model of Work
In March 2017, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education weighed in on a controversial debate throughout the medical community, deciding that first-year residents would be allowed to work 24-hour shifts — an increase from the historical 16 hours[1]. The…
Considering the Future: Challenges and Opportunities for Real-time Biomarker Tracking
In diagnosing heart attack, doctors in the emergency room will order a series of troponin tests. One is administered immediately and the rest in a few hour intervals over several days. Constantly elevated blood troponins are indicative of cardiac injury.…
Post-Operative Delirium
When an elderly loved one needs surgery, there are a host of worries and fears in the minds of friends, family, and caregivers. Advanced age predisposes people to many surgical complications, but one of the most common yet least recognized…
Surgical Navigators, a New Front for Surgery
As the surgical field progresses to new technological and strategic heights, the role of addressing patient satisfaction is increasingly important for practice development — both in and out of the operating room (OR). Along with clinical efficacy, patient satisfaction is…