Table of contents:
- Don't be afraid to ask questions before surgery
- 1. Do I need to have this operation?
- 2. What are the benefits, risks, and side effects?
- 3. What preparations need to be done?
- 4. What happens during the surgical procedure?
- 5. Who is involved in the operation?
It is normal to feel nervous before a surgical procedure. In order to deal with stress or nervousness before surgery, actively ask the surgeon a few questions about the operation you are going to undergo before it is time to enter the operating room. Do you know the preoperative questions you should ask the medical personnel in the hospital? If not, find out in this article.
Don't be afraid to ask questions before surgery
After your doctor confirms that your disease needs surgery, the next step is to choose a surgeon that suits your condition. The reason is, every surgeon has their own specialty.
Only after that, you can consult the surgeon. Below are some things you can ask the surgeon of your choice to reduce preoperative nervousness.
1. Do I need to have this operation?
The first preoperative question you should be asking is why you need to do this surgery. This is useful for answering your doubts.
Even though your doctor has stated that you need surgery to treat your disease, you can still ask the surgeon whether this condition really requires surgery or there are other ways to overcome it.
The surgeon will provide other treatment options and risks for each option. You can also ask other doctors, apart from the first surgeon, what treatment options could be as good as the surgical options. At the same time, you also really understand the risk of every choice you make.
2. What are the benefits, risks, and side effects?
The questions before surgery that you should ask next are about the benefits, risks, and side effects. Knowing these three things is important.
By understanding these three things, you will know what might happen if you had the operation. Ask what risks are common and how likely it is that complications will occur.
3. What preparations need to be done?
Before doing surgery, it is important for you to know clearly what you need to prepare before it is time to undergo surgery. For example, whether you need to fast or not, how long you need to fast, are there other medical tests that need to be passed, and whether you need to take certain drugs.
If your surgeon asks you to fast, ask clearly how long you should fast and when is the right time to start fasting. Having fluids or food in the stomach can create a dangerous complication and can cause nausea or vomiting after or during surgery.
4. What happens during the surgical procedure?
Before doing surgery, it is better if you know what will happen during the operation and how it will proceed. Such as the type of anesthesia and what surgical techniques will be used.
These preoperative questions are not mandatory for you to ask, unless you are "brave" and mentally prepared to hear what the team of surgeons who are in charge of surgery will do on you.
5. Who is involved in the operation?
In a surgery, a team will take part in the process. In order for you to be more calm in undergoing surgery, of course there is nothing wrong with asking who is on your surgeon's team. You may want to know if the team of doctors has a lot of experience and so on.
Knowing that your body is going to be operated on is not an easy thing to accept, whether it is minor or major. Not only nervousness, but it also triggers stress because you think about the risks or complications that might occur.
Therefore, if you have already determined who the surgeon will treat you, ask whatever you want to know. Get as much information as possible so that you can calm down and be better prepared.
