Hospitals and Ambulatory Surgery Centers are increasingly aware of the dramatic results obtainable through implementation of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS). Established in Europe in the 1990’s, the ERAS approach is designed to drive value in surgical care throughout the OR continuum, from the time of case booking to post-discharge recovery. With an emphasis on patient-focused care, evidence-based clinical pathways are integrated into a coordinated care approach with consistent processes. This methodology has been shown to optimize surgical outcomes and eliminate unnecessary costs. Properly implemented, Enhanced Recovery After Surgery protocols position hospitals to thrive in an environment of bundled payments and value-based care.
Enhance Healthcare can partner with your hospital to develop and implement a result-oriented ERAS program across single or multiple surgical service lines in facilities of all sizes. Our Enhanced Recovery After Surgery program includes:
ERAS Program Governance+
- Work with Administrative leaders, surgeons, nursing leadership and other stakeholders to create a project steering committee
- Identify and support surgical and ERAS anesthesia champions
- Assist steering committee in establishing goals and objective targets for each service line program (Orthopedics, Urology, etc.)
- Determine design and analysis of pilot project(s) and initial service lines and surgeons to pilot
- Create pertinent data points and tracking mechanisms
Preoperative Initiatives+
- Assist in creating preoperative ERAS protocols
- Identify patients appropriate for Enhanced Recovery After Surgery tracking
- Create standardized processes for preoperative optimization (Focus on NPO guidelines, Preoperative nutrition)
- Coordinate communication of clinical expectations and requirements to all stakeholders (surgeon offices, PAT Clinic, anesthesia, holding area, etc.)
- Assist in development of pain management protocols
- Coordinate with discharge planning to identify candidates for proactive planning
Intraoperative Initiatives+
- Standardize intraoperative care for specific procedure types
- Standardize anesthesia approach for specific procedures
- Multimodal pain management – coordination between anesthesia team and surgeon
- Anesthetic technique to facilitate early ambulation where appropriate
- Assist in development of adjunctive medication to be administered intra-operatively
Postoperative Initiatives+
Create procedure specific protocols to facilitate:
- Early ambulation
- Rapid oral intake
- Early PT
- Discharge planning implementation
- Multimodal pain management
