All patients who underwent endoscopic gynaecological surgery between 1 February and 1 May 1998, and for whom good quality operative photographs were available, and medical and nursing staff randomly selected from lists of practitioners within the Southwest Sydney Area Health Service. All patients believed operative images were valuable in helping them understand their condition. Nearly all patients denied that operative images would create anxiety, and specialists, general practitioners and nurses also felt that the photographs would not cause anxiety. Photographic records of operative procedures are regarded as valuable by both referring doctors and their patients.
Patients find photographs useful in understanding their disease.
Intraoperative photography is now widely available, but is underused by referring practitioners and consulting specialists. However, its role may extend to providing documentation for personal records, to communication with referring practitioners and to complementing operative or legal reports. Photographic records may enable more appropriate decisions to be be made after reflection or consultation. Documentation is ideal for comparison before and after surgery, or for monitoring the progress of certain diseases. In gynaecological practice, the documentation of normal findings is particularly useful, especially when investigating pelvic pain.