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AHRQ brochure educates patients about surgery

Ambulatory Safety Monitor, January 5, 2006

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In keeping with overall efforts to include patients in the medical decision-making process, the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has released a new publication, Having Surgery? What You Need to Know.

With the expected rollout this year of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) Hospital Consumer Assessment of Health Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) patient satisfaction survey, this new AHRQ brochure further emphasizes the importance the federal government is placing on patient satisfaction as an indication of overall quality improvement efforts.

The brochure suggests questions to help patients obtain needed information, including:

• How and where their operation will be performed
• What kind of anesthesia will be used
• The feasibility of non-surgical options
• Risks and benefits of surgery and the risks of not having surgery
• Expected recovery time
• The qualifications and experience of their surgeon for the particular procedure
• Cost of the operation and its coverage by insurance
• How many times the surgery has been performed in the hospital the surgeon suggests, or in other hospitals if the patient has a choice of facilities.

The brochure is available online in English or Spanish.

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