The Anaesthetic Room

Once George arrived in theatre the first interaction with his ODP was a documentation check, looking at the consent form and asking George if he understands what is to take place and if he is ok to proceed. This step is also performed with the anaesthetist as part of the WHO, known as the ‘sign in’ and then the ODP can apply the routine standards of monitoring set out by klein et al, (2021) on behalf of the Association of Anaesthetists, which includes ECG, Non-invasive blood pressure monitoring, O2 saturation monitoring and finally capnography.

The Anaesthetic

Arterial Line

From this point the process of the anaesthetic can begin. Commencing with an arterial line, this is a form of invasive monitoring placed in George's arteries and allows for a real time reading of the blood pressure and allows those caring for George to take arterial blood samples with ease (Woodrow, 2019). This form of monitoring is not unusual for procedures like George’s as variations in blood pressure can be serious and need treating immediately.

Saint Lukes, (n.d.)

Combined spinal epidural

The second procedure performed in the anaesthetic room will be a combined spinal epidural (CSE). This is a small injection in the patients back, placing medication around the nerves in the spine, then placing a catheter to allow the continued infusion of local anaesthesia.

As concluded by Li et al, (2022) using this technique will allow higher levels of pain relief for George both peri-operative and post operative and will be removed later into his recovery on HDU.

General Anaesthetic

Once the above procedures are complete its time for George to go under general anaesthetic (GA), as surgery is inherently painful GA’s provide what is known as a triad of analgesia to alleviate pain, allow muscle relaxation to aid the surgeon and induce a state of controlled unconsciousness (Royal College of Anaesthetists, 2021)

Anon, (2022)

Central Line

Finally due to the nature of George’s surgery it may be necessary to give George certain medications that can irritate and damage peripheral veins or allow for more infusions to run simultaneously, so a central venous catheter or central line must be placed. Additionally, it will allow closer monitoring of Georges cardiovascular system specifically the fluid balance .

This is the last procedure performed in George's anaesthetic as the placement of a central line can be uncomfortable for the patient. George will also need an X-Ray to confirm the position of the central line. (Wicker and Dalby, 2017)