To the family and friends of patients undergoing surgery....

SCHEDULED STARTING TIME OF SURGERY:

ESTIMATED LENGTH OF SURGERY:

You should plan to check us at the waiting area information desk as soon as your family member or friend has left for the Operating Room. This is the only way we can talk to you afterwards, or on occasion; reach you to give you updates on the operation's progress. If the surgery is scheduled for many hours, you can leave to eat or do other things, but you should let the information desk know that you are going to leave the area, where you are going, and how long you might be gone so that we might reach you if need be. You should be in the area before the elected time of the end of the operation.

The information deck will overhead page you or the "family of" when they receive the recovery call to let you know that the surgery has been completed. The overhaul page system works ONLY on the Surgical Waiting Area and not throughout the hospital or the cafeteria.

We will plan to see you in the surgical waiting area after we have safely completed the early phases of the post-anesthesia recovery in the "Recovery Room" or PAR (Post Anesthesia Recovery). This may take up to an hour after the initial call. Sometimes, especially if another case is ready to start, we will call and talk to you. If for some reason, we have not come or called within 30 minutes, please ask the information desk to page us.

Your patient will be in the "Recovery Rooms for 1-2 hours. This is standard recovery time, although the times vary with each individual. For example, spinal anesthetics take longer to "wear off", loca1 anesthetics are much shorter acting. Under no circumstances are family members or friends allowed in the recovery room.

The information deck will inform you of the patient's return to the room as soon as they receive the information that the patient has left recovery. At that time they will give you the room number and direct you to the correct wing and floor.