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Preparation for surgery
Welcome
to a behind-the-scenes look at what happens in preparation
for Surgery at our Hospital. For those who are perhaps a
little weak in the stomach, take heart! We have not included
any pictures of the surgery itself. However, we thought that
it was important to explain what we do before and after a
surgical procedure to ensure operations are as safe as
possible.
Preparation
of surgical equipment:
The day before a surgery is scheduled, the
necessary instruments, together with swabs and
drapes, are gathered into a surgical pack. After
the prepared pack is sealed, it is steam sterilised
in one of the Hospital's autoclaves, before being
allowed to cool and dry overnight. A similar
procedure is followed for the surgeon's surgical
gown and hand towel.
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Pre-anaesthetic examination and anaesthetic induction
Having
fasted from 8pm on the night before their
admission, the patient arrives on the morning of
the operation between 8:00 am and 8:30 am. After
being weighed and admitted to Hospital, each animal
is given a thorough pre-anaesthetic
examination.
After being given a premedicant (which includes a
pain-relieving drug), and allowing time for the
medication to work, the patient has a small amount
of hair clipped from their forearm. The injections
site is then prepared and an anaesthetic agent is
injected into the vein.
After the patient is asleep, an endotracheal tube
is passed down into his or her wind pipe. The
animal is connected via this tube to a gaseous
anaesthetic machine which delivers anaesthetic gas,
and oxygen.Monitoring equipment is connected to the patient,
and a detailed anaesthetic record kept throughout
the surgical procedure. Further information about
anaesthetics and anaesthetic risk can be found on
our anaesthetics
page...
Preparation
of the surgeon:
The
surgeon prepares for surgery while the patient is
being anaesthetised. After removing any jewelry,
and then donning a surgical cap and mask, the
surgeon scrubs his or her hands and forearms in an
antiseptic solution for about ten minutes. This
minimises bacterial contamination. One of the
theatre nurses then opens the pre-sterilised gown
and glove packs. The surgeon dries his hands, puts
on the gown and gloves, then heads into the theatre
to organise the sterilised instruments and drapes
to be used for the procedure.
Preparation
of the patient:
After
being anaesthetised, the patient has a section of
the hair over the operating site clipped away. They
are then taken into the theatre and reconnected to
another anaesthetic machine and set of monitoring
equipment. Subsequent to this, the exposed skin is
prepared using a series of three disinfectant
solutions.
Once this is done, the animal is ready for the surgeon to drape the surgical site and begin the procedure.
The
anaesthetic gas is turned off
after the surgery is completed. To aid their
recovery from the anaesthetic, the patient is
allowed to breath pure oxygen for about 5 minutes
before breathing room air. As the animal starts to
wake from the anaesthetic, the endotracheal tube is
removed, and the patient is settled into one of the
Hospital cages in the treatment room.
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Each
cage has a soft fluffy mat on the floor to ensure
that the patient is comfortable, and towels and
heating pads are used to provide warmth after the
surgery. During the initial stages of recovery, one
of the nurses remains with the animal to ensure
their safety and to comfort them if needed.
Although the premedicant that each animal receives
contains pain relief, we also give additional
medication to control discomfort after the surgery
if it is needed. Once the patient has recovered
sufficiently, and after a post-surgery examination,
the animal is reunited with their owners.
On release of the animal from hospital, we discuss
home-care of their pet with the owners and schedule
any necessary follow-up appointments. These include
examining the wound in 5 days to ensure healing,
and having sutures removed 10-14 days after the
surgery if dissolving suture material has not been
used.
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