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Welcome to the VA Healthcare System.
Thank you for your service to our country.
Now it is our time to serve you.
Our health care team is here to provide you with excellent care.
The more you know, the better prepared you will be.
Our goal is for you to be part of our team.
We want to decrease your anxiety and make sure
you are well prepared for your surgery or procedure.
We recognize this is a very important event
for you and your family and have developed
this video to best prepare you for your surgery.
For the purposes of the video, we will be using
the word surgery but this is also relevant to
Veterans having cardiac catheterizations, biopsies,
arteriograms and any other invasive procedure.
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You and your doctor have agreed on the need for surgery.
Prior to surgery, your doctor will order pre op testing
which could include blood work, an EKG, a Chest x-ray
or any other tests your doctor feels are necessary.
All your pre-operative testing will be reviewed
to clear you for surgery.
Your doctor will also review and obtain
your consent prior to surgery.
Now let us discuss what you can do
to ensure your surgery is being done under the
best possible circumstances.
Most importantly, stay healthy!
Avoid being around people that are ill
and use excellent hand washing techniques.
Prior to surgery it is very important
to report any changes in your health to your
doctor or a member of your health care team.
These changes could include
fever, infection, new injury or any other illness.
In order to help you heal faster and decrease your risk of
infection it is important to cut back or quit smoking.
Also, you should know that alcohol and recreational drugs,
such as marijuana and cocaine, mixed with anesthesia
can be very dangerous.
You should not have any alcohol at all
for 24 hours before your surgery.
And you must not use recreational drugs
for at least one week before surgery and anesthesia.
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Now we would like to give you some instructions that need
to be followed the night before and day of surgery.
You will receive a Preoperative instructions sheet.
It will help you prepare for your surgery.
It is very important to follow all of the pre op instructions
or your surgery may be delayed or cancelled.
It is also extremely important that you are on time.
Though there may be some waiting involved prior
to your procedure, everyone is counting on you to be on time -
especially the Veterans scheduled after you!
Make sure you bring your VA card with you
or your picture identification if you do not have a VA card.
Do not have anything to eat or drink
after midnight prior to your surgery.
This includes food, all fluids including water,
gum, mints or hard candy.
If you eat or drink, your stomach contents could back up
into your lungs while under anesthesia
and cause serious complications.
It is ok to brush your teeth.
On the day of surgery take only the medications
your doctor told you to take.
You may take a few sips of water with your medications
to get them down, but only a few sips.
Here are a few medication tips:
Many medications for your heart and blood pressure are
important to continue on the day of surgery.
If you are diabetic, your doctor or pharmacist
will decide which diabetic medication
you should stop or continue. It is very important for you to
follow these specific instructions provided to you.
Blood thinning medications are often
stopped prior to your surgery.
A few examples are Aspirin, Motrin, Ibuprofen, Aleve,
Coumadin, also known as Warfarin
or Plavix, also known as Clopidigrel.
These are only a few examples as there are many
more medications that thin your blood.
Your doctor must decide what is best
for you and your type of surgery.
Do not stop taking these medications
unless you are instructed to do so.
Take a shower or bath prior to coming in for surgery.
Bathing can help reduce germs on the skin
thereby reducing the risk of postoperative infection.
If you have been given special surgical soap by the nurse,
please use as directed.
No perfumes, deodorant, powder, or lotion
should be used after you shower.
You will have to remove all jewelry before going to surgery.
This includes rings, watches, chains, and piercings.
No jewelry is allowed in the operating room so it is best to
leave it at home to avoid it getting lost or damaged.
Come dressed for the occasion in clean clothes.
Loose fitting pants or shorts, a button up shirt
and slip on shoes are ideal.
Eyeglasses, contact lenses, hearing aids, and
dentures will also be removed prior to surgery. Remember, do
not use glue on your dentures before coming in.
The entire Surgery and recovery room process
takes about four to six hours on average.
Prepare yourself and your family or friends for this time frame.
On arrival, be sure to have your driver's name
and phone number to give to your nurse.
If you are going home the same day as surgery,
you must have someone here to take you home.
You cannot take a bus or cab alone
and you cannot drive yourself home.
For your safety, your procedure will be cancelled
if you are going home the same day
and do not have a responsible person to accompany you.
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Upon arrival on your day of surgery,
you will be welcomed by a health care professional.
You will be asked to change into a gown and
place your belongings in a bag.
You will have your blood pressure checked
and answer some simple questions.
An IV will be started.
In some cases body hair may need to be removed
from your surgical area. Please do not shave
your surgical area yourself prior to arrival.
Upon transfer to the Operating Room or procedure area,
your family or friends will be shown to the
appropriate waiting room.
Since it will be a long day for your guests,
we encourage them to bring a sweater, a snack,
and something to read.
Remember, it may be 4-6 hours before you go home.
After surgery, you will go to the recovery room.
If you are going to be admitted after surgery, you will go
to an in-patient unit when your room becomes available.
If you are going home on the same day,
you will return to the outpatient unit
to be prepared for discharge.
You will be given discharge instructions as
directed by your doctor regarding activity, diet,
medications, follow up appointments
and any other information needed for you to
feel at ease for discharge.
We hope your experience will be a positive one.
We appreciate you taking your time to watch this video
and hope it better prepares you for surgery.
If you have any questions or concerns
please let one of our staff know.
We will be happy to assist you.
We wish you a speedy recovery
and thank you for allowing us to care for you.