Your physician will schedule a preoperative (pre-op) visit at the hospital prior to your surgery. Please bring a list of current medications with you to this visit.
On the date of the pre-op visit, please present to the hospital’s registration desk, and then proceed to the Short Stay Unit to complete a health assessment. A nurse, along with a member of the Anesthesia Department, will perform the assessment. You will be asked questions related to your health history. Lab, x-ray and possibly other diagnostic tests will be performed during this visit if your physician orders them.
The nurse will also provide information related to your upcoming surgical procedure including: not eating or drinking after midnight the night before your procedure, the time you will need to arrive to the hospital on the day of your surgery, how long the procedure will take, the amount of time you will be in the recovery room, etc.
The anesthesiologist will discuss anesthetic options and risks. He/she will discuss the advantages of general anesthesia (in which you are unconscious) and spinal or epidural anesthesia (in which the lower half of your body is completely numb and pain-free and you will sleep lightly but not be unconscious). He/she will recommend the best option for you.