4 6 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 9
When it comes to pain, surgeons
need to prep their patients well
before they head into the OR. If
you don't have that conversation,
you're not doing your job, says
Dana LaVanture, MD, FACS, a
board certified hand surgeon in
the department of orthopedics at
Guthrie Robert Packer Hospital in
Sayre, Pa.
"Patients are relying on you and trusting you to do the proce-
dure," says Dr. LaVanture. "They should be able to count on you
to help them not just manage that pain, but also to understand
that pain."
It's good to let patients know about the degree of pain they should
expect. A soft tissue procedure will usually come with significantly
less pain than one that deals with bone. Patients have different
degrees of pain tolerance, so it's important to ask if they've required
pain medicine during previous procedures. The conversation is spe-
cific to every patient.
"I live in a rural area, and we have a lot of farmers and laborers
who don't have the expectation that they will have no pain," says
Dr. LaVanture. "For those people, pain management can be easi-
er."
Sometimes, all patients need is a little bit of direction. That pre-
op reassurance can help set the tone for patients that they don't
need opioids.
"Patients anticipate more pain than they actually have," says Dr.
Patients who
expect more pain
have more pain.
Pre-op Conversation Sets Tone for Opioid-sparing Surgery
MANAGING EXPECTATIONS
