Having an operation can be both physically and emotionally stressful. The Enhanced recovery programme will support your recovery and get you back to full health as quickly as possible. Research has shown that the earlier a person gets out of bed and starts walking, eating and drinking after surgery the shorter their recovery time should be. To enhance your recovery from surgery it is important that you play an active role in your own care.
Important points to consider before your surgery include:
- Eating well – your body needs energy for repair. Patients are given carbohydrate rich drinks the day before surgery and on the morning of surgery (not suitable for diabetic patients). You should try to eat a well balanced diet to prepare yourself for surgery.
- Exercise – being physically active before your operation is proven to help you recover quickly, e.g. walking regularly is a good form of exercise for this
- Relaxation – relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing exercises and mindfulness, can be beneficial prior to your surgery. Some people also find that keeping their brains active can achieve similar results to relaxation techniques.
- Smoking and alcohol – giving up or cutting down will help speed up your recovery and reduce your risk of developing complications
Following your surgery:
- Eating well: We encourage our patients to commence light fluid and diet as soon as able following surgery, where appropriate. We also give patients carbohydrate rich drinks following surgery for at least 3 days.
- Exercise: Mobility following surgery is key to preventing chest infections, blood clots, pressure sores and helps restore bowel function. We strongly encourage our patients to mobilise out of bed the day following surgery and sometimes the day of surgery. We need your full co-operation and commitment to achieve this.
- Restoring normal body function: As soon as safe to do so, we will remove your urinary catheters and drains, and also convert your intravenous analgesia to oral tablets.
- Pain Control: Effective pain control can help you achieve the above steps. It is important that you let the nursing team know if pain remains an issue for you as there is a Specialist Hospital Team that can review this for you.
ERAS is very much about patients taking ownership of their recovery and only by working with staff can we together make it work.