Clinical Utility of an Undersized Nurse-Operated Recovery Room in the Postoperative Course: Results From an Italian Community Setting

PurposeIn Europe, standardized criteria for recovery room (RR) requirements have not been established. The purpose of this study was to examine the clinical utility of an undersized nurse-operated RR in an Italian community hospital.DesignSingle-center observational study.MethodsA total of 1,945 consecutive surgical patients admitted to the RR at the study institution between September 31, 2009, and August 31, 2011, were included in the study. A control group of surgical patients not admitted to the RR, matched for age, gender, American Society of Anesthesiologists score, and type of surgery were also considered. The prevalence of early adverse events occurring within 3 hours of the end of surgery was compared between the two groups.FindingsPatients admitted to the RR (mean age, 73.6 ± 14.2 years; 42.2% male; and 76.3% having major surgery) showed lower prevalences of hypotension (P < .0001), hypertensive response (P < .0001), new arrhythmias requiring intervention (P = .0036), and oxygen desaturation (P < .0001) in comparison with the control group. No differences in the proportions of patients experiencing postoperative nausea and vomiting, shivering, bleeding, and respiratory events were found. The Numeric Rating Scale for pain was also significantly lower at 2 hours in the study group as compared to the control group (1 [0 to 5] vs 3 [1 to 7]; P < .0001).ConclusionIn this Italian community setting, an undersized nurse-operated RR contributed to a reduced prevalence of adverse postoperative events.