What is it about?
In Thailand (and some Asian and developing countries), it's usual for people who need elective surgeries, like laparoscopic cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal surgery), to stay in the hospital before the operation. But this has made hospitals really crowded. The idea of "day care surgery" from Western countries could be a helpful solution. Since we don't have much experience with this approach, our current study is looking at whether it's really necessary to be in the hospital before surgery for laparoscopic cholecystectomy.
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Photo by Li Lin on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Our study found that most patients did not benefit from being admitted before laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Only those with multiple health issues were more likely to require hospital admission. While the traditional hospital stay is a safe approach, it may not be the most efficient use of limited resources.
Perspectives
Our findings suggest that it might be time to consider adjusting the traditional policy. Hospital overcrowding is just one consequence of poor resource management. In reality, our human resources have been more heavily impacted. Instead of directing our staff and materials toward those who truly need them, we've been allocating these resources to many patients who might not necessarily require them.
Suppadech Tunruttanakul
Sawanpracharak Hospital
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Preoperative admission is non-essential in most patients receiving elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy: A cohort study, PLoS ONE, October 2023, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293446.
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