When this is the case, the circumstances shall be documented in the patient's record. An anesthesiologist shall be responsible for determining the medical status of the patient, developing a plan of anesthesia care, and acquainting the patient or the responsible adult with the proposed plan. The responsible anesthesiologist shall verify that the above has been properly performed and documented in the patient's record. American Society of Anesthesiologists, Approved by House of Delegates on October 14, 1987. The preoperative evaluation should be performed by an anesthesiologist.
Training is required to understand the physiological changes of surgery.
What is determined to be medically optimized for daily life by may not be adequate for the stress of major surgery. With the increasing age of our population, patients are presenting for surgery with more complex medical problems. Surgery is a major insult on the human body regardless of the anesthesia provided. The information obtained from the patient preoperatively is used to devise a safe anesthetic plan. The anesthetic agents we plan for intra-operatively are aimed at minimizing the body's stress response to surgery, maintaining homeostasis while considering the patient's chronic medical problems, managing fluid shifts and losses, and providing postoperative pain control.