An audit of knowledge regarding postanaesthesia care among residents in a tertiary care hospital

Introduction: A Postanaesthesia Care Unit ( PACU) is a specifically assigned area where patients receive pertinent postanaesthesia care after general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or local anaesthesia. Anaesthesiologists play an extensive role in monitoring for improving the safety of patients and are thus obligated to audit their practices. Aims and objectives: To evaluate knowledge regarding standards of postanaesthesia care among postgraduates and senior residents working at a tertiary care referral centre in Delhi. Material and methods: A structured, self-administered questionnaire was administered to postgraduates and senior residents working in the hospital during August 2015. Results: Of the 78 resident doctors, 43.6% post-graduates (PGs) and 38.20% senior residents (SRs) agreed that vital signs should be checked every 15 min in the PACU. However only 48.7% PGs and 61.5% SRs agreed that patients are not required to pass urine and 66.7% PGs and 74.4% SRs were aware that patients are not required to drink and retain clear liquids prior to discharge. Conclusion: There were certain gaps in knowledge of resident doctors and these lacunae in awareness were identified and recommendations were made to pave the way for executing these guidelines in routine practice. (C) 2016 Indian Journal of Medical Specialities. Published by Elsevier, a division of RELX India, Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved.