More Than a Perioperative Surgical Home: An Opportunity for Anesthesiologists to Advance Public Health.
Clarity R CoffmanJody C LengYing YeOluwatobi O HunterTessa L WaltersRachel WangJimmy K WongSeshadri C MudumbaiEdward R MarianoPublished in: Seminars in cardiothoracic and vascular anesthesia (2023)
Public health and the medical specialty of anesthesiology have been closely intertwined throughout history, dating back to the 1800s when Dr. John Snow used contact tracing methods to identify the Broad Street Pump as the source of a cholera outbreak in London. During the COVID-19 pandemic, leaders in anesthesiology and anesthesia patient safety came forward to develop swift recommendations in the face of rapidly changing evidence to help protect patients and healthcare workers. While these high-profile examples may seem like uncommon events, there are many common modern-day public health issues that regularly intersect with anesthesiology and surgery. These include, but are not limited to, smoking; chronic opioid use and opioid use disorder; and obstructive sleep apnea. As an evolving medical specialty that encompasses pre- and postoperative care and acute and chronic pain management, anesthesiologists are uniquely positioned to improve patient care and outcomes and promote long-lasting behavioral changes to improve overall health. In this article, we make the case for advancing the role of the anesthesiologist beyond the original perioperative surgical home model into promoting public health initiatives within the perioperative period.
Keyphrases
- public health
- pain management
- healthcare
- patient safety
- patients undergoing
- quality improvement
- obstructive sleep apnea
- cardiac surgery
- global health
- end stage renal disease
- ejection fraction
- chronic pain
- newly diagnosed
- drug induced
- minimally invasive
- chronic kidney disease
- liver failure
- palliative care
- metabolic syndrome
- acute kidney injury
- peritoneal dialysis
- mental health
- adipose tissue
- prognostic factors
- coronary artery disease
- patient reported outcomes
- risk assessment
- aortic dissection
- weight loss