Paediatric Surgical Outcomes and Pre-operative Education in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-sectional Investigation
Authors: Alhajjaj Zahra , Alshammari Abdurahman S , Alamoudi Shefa Abdullah , Alanazi Hadeel T , AlShahrani Reem , Aleid Abbas Fadeil , Khan Arshadullah , Hakme Elie , Alamer Abdullah , Albinsaad Loai Saleh 
Published: December 2024

Abstract

Introduction:
Paediatric surgery presents challenges mainly because of the patients’ sensitive age and special care requirements. There is growing evidence that shows that patient education before the operation can introduce a significant modification to patients’ results and satisfaction levels no matter the surgery type. However, knowledge about its effectiveness on the post-operative period of the patient, patient satisfaction and cost analysis, especially in paediatric surgery within Saudi Arabia is scarce. The research goal of this study was to assess the effect of pre-operative education on such outcomes in Saudi Arabia and an assessment of current practice and possible advantages. It is these factors that must be well understood regarding the formulation of future, up-and-coming strategies and healthcare policies so as to improve the level of care in paediatric surgical context.

Methods:
This cross-sectional research was carried out amongst paediatric surgical patients and their families in different teaching hospitals in Saudi Arabia. A total of 919 participants have the data collected between January and September 2023. Descriptive statistics including means, medians and standard deviations as well as inferential statistics which included Chi-square tests, Fisher’s exact tests, t-tests and Mann–Whitney U-tests were used to analyse the correlation between pre-operative education and the outcomes. In this study, logistic regression was employed to determine factors that affect post-operative recovery and patient satisfaction. P < 0 is taken as significant in the current study to give support to the null hypotheses. The differences were, therefore, compared to 05 which was deemed statistically significant.

Results:
The findings showed positive effects resulting from such practices on the improvement of patient satisfaction levels and quicker post-operative healing. The self-administered questionnaire revealed that the participants who had undergone pre-operative education had a higher mean Likert scale score of 4.06 ± 0.905 while the respondents who did not have pre-operative education having a mean score of 3.02 ± 1.016 only. Furthermore, patients who had undergone pre-operative education had a better understanding of post-operative complications and required time for recovery and described better experience in pain management.

Conclusions:
These conclusions evidence the need for framing the problem of pre-operative education as an essential aspect of children’s surgical treatment. The UMEARS that offer concise pre-operative education ought to be employed as mandatory and available to all patients and families. The evidence obtained regarding enhancements of post-operative healing and patients’ satisfaction underlines the need for enhancing such programmes by healthcare managers. Nonetheless, these findings are encouraging and future studies should examine the sustained outcomes of pre-operative education in addition to determining the possibility of integrating the intervention within large-scale studies. One possible limitation of the study is that the cross-sectional research design makes it difficult to infer causality among the variables used. Additionally, the data were self-reported, which may have been influenced by social desirability bias.