Why Patients are Standing Up for Surgery at Bernay Hospital

Sole stretcher-bearer of Anne de Ticheville hospital centerin Bernay (Eure), Stéphane Carrière has seen his job transform in recent months.

Increasingly, he accompanies patients on foot to the operating theatre, where previously they were systematically transferred in a lying position. Whether stretchers or chairs are not put away in the closet, their use has nevertheless been considerably restricted.

This has improved the support, which has become more comfortable. People appreciate the process. And it made our work easier, everyone finds it

Put the patient in the actor’s position

This approach, already implemented in other hospitals, is that of the “standing patient” course, discussed internally and then tested at the end of 2021 in three departments, gynecology, ophthalmology and endoscopy. Given the positive feedback, it was extended to all specialties in 2022.

“It is a question of putting the patient in the position of an actor, of removing his anxiety, while respecting his dignity, explain Jimmy Lesueur, surgical executive, and Wilfried Lantier, healthcare executive in the operating room. The relationship between patient and caregiver has improved. And then, it reduces the handling. »

70% of operations

On the day of the operation, patients are seen in the outpatient surgery unit on 3^e stage. The team gives them an identification bracelet and puts them in a room where they are given a single-use clothing kit : an adapted tunic, trousers and slippers.

“We involved the president of the users’ commission in the choice of these clothes which respect the dignity of patients”, book Nathalie Horndeputy director of the hospital centre.

They are then led by the stretcher-bearer or a nurse’s aide, on foot, via a corridor and an elevator to the first floor and the waiting room of the operating roomwhere they are received by a nurse.

We improve productivity, we can accompany two people standing at the same time, rather than going back and forth with a chair or a stretcher

In 2022, 1,963 patients arrived standing in the operating room, i.e. 70% of operations in total. Some are naturally excluded from this course, due to a handicap, a lack of autonomy or a prior premedication. “For example, elderly people who come for a cataract are transported lying down to avoid any fall,” says Jimmy Lesueur.

“No failure”

While departures are now mostly standing, returns to the unit of outpatient surgery continue, on the other hand, to be done in a wheelchair or a stretcher. “After anesthesia, there would be too much risk to be standing, even if there is time in the recovery room”, specifies the framework.

Of the satisfaction surveys are completed by patients before returning home. “We have had no failures and no refusals, the opinions are positive on this new course”, concludes Wilfried Lantier with satisfaction.

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