Perioperative care in gynaecology

Good perioperative care in gynaecology aims towards optimising the patient's condition prior to surgery, ensuring the provision of patient-tailored treatment, minimising postoperative morbidity and length of stay in hospital, and overall improving the patient's experience.Patients undergoing elective surgery are placed on an enhanced recovery pathway, which is an evidence-based patient-centred approach to care. It is designed to optimise patients prior to surgery, enhance perioperative nutrition, analgesia, and mobility, and post-operatively achieve faster recovery with fewer complications.The process can start within the primary care setting at the point of referral, with a thorough preoperative assessment focussing on identification of patient-specific risk factors, their optimisation and appropriate preparation for surgery. This allows for early planning of both inpatient and outpatient postoperative care.