Parental Satisfaction With Pediatric Preoperative Assessment and Education in a Presurgical Care Center

PurposeThe aim of this study was to evaluate parental satisfaction with preoperative assessment and education in a pediatric presurgical care center (PSCC) as well as parental use of a computer instructional video, EMMI, which is a product of Emmi Solutions (Chicago, IL), a health information company for patients.DesignA prospective, exploratory, comparative, and correlational descriptive design was implemented.MethodsA 23-item questionnaire was completed by 542 parents or legal guardians at the end of their child's PSCC visit.FindingsVery high overall satisfaction was seen with the visit. Highest overall satisfaction was seen related to nurse practitioner and registered nurse behaviors and lowest satisfaction to operational aspects.ConclusionsThis study validates parents' perceptions of the high value of nurses' explanations, respect shown, and response to questions during preoperative assessment of the child and education of the family anticipating surgery. Identification of less satisfying aspects of the presurgical experience provides opportunities for improvement.