Pre-Operative Assessment Clinic (POAC)

The POAC is a nurse-led clinic that specialises in preparing patients for their planned surgery. A pre-operative assessment is performed on patients 16 years and over who are going to have a planned surgery or a surgical procedure performed under a general anaesthetic.

The type of the POAC appointment depends on the nature of your planned operation and whether you have any underlying medical problems that may influence the preparation for and recovery from surgery.

Your appointment will be with a specialised POAC sister either by face-to-face or a telephone assessment.

Following this appointment, if you have multiple ongoing medical problems that could have an impact on your surgery, you may require an appointment with the Consultant Anaesthetist.

POAC Contact Details

Telephone: 01270 612448 (answerphone)

Email: POAC@mcht.nhs.uk

The answerphone and emails are checked daily, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays). If possible, please provide your hospital number, full name, best contact number to call you back and a brief message why you have contacted POAC.

List of your current medication (prescription or actual medication itself)
Past medical history
If you have had surgery at another hospital, please bring your discharge or clinic letters
If you are known to have high blood pressure, and if you are able to, please bring with you some recent home blood pressure readings
If you are having a telephone appointment, please make sure that you have an up to date blood pressure reading along with your current height and weight

You may have some of the following tests:

A detailed nursing assessment
Clinical Examination (listening to your heart and lung sounds)
An ECG (tracing of heart rhythm)
Blood tests
X-ray

Occasionally additional tests are required dependant on your health. If these are required, the POAC sister will discuss these with you at your appointment.

The nurse will advise you about taking medications on the day of your surgery and will inform you of any that may need to be stopped for a period of time before your surgery.

Exercise
Regular exercise should help to prepare you for your operation, help you to recover and improve your long-term health. Before you start exercising, ask the pre-operative
assessment sister for advice.

Weight
Try to maintain a healthy weight. You have a higher risk of developing complications if you are overweight.

For further information, please visit https://www.rcoa.ac.uk/patients/patient-information-resources/preparing-surgery-fitter-better-sooner/fitter-better-sooner

Please see below for the general fasting advice. Please note that you may be given written specific or additional fasting instructions at your POAC appointment, and these will need to be followed to make sure your surgery goes ahead as planned.

Please note that your operation may be delayed or cancelled if you do not follow the fasting instructions.

Have a bedtime snack night before your surgery. Avoid alcohol for 24 hours before your surgery.

On day of surgery

Do not eat for six hours before your admission time. This includes chewing gum.

Also avoid the following:

Milk in drinks
Sweets
Sports drinks
Fizzy Drinks
Alcohol
Coca Cola of any description

Please do dink one full cup of water (250-500ml), exactly one hour before your admission time.

Although it is necessary to be fasted before surgery, drinking water at this time is safe, and could reduce the risk of unwanted side effects associated with dehydration, before and after your surgery
Instead of water you could drink black tea, black coffee or diluted squash

Medications

You can take routine medications with your drink, unless advised otherwise.

Please bring with you the following items only. Please do not bring any valuables into hospital.

• Wear comfortable clothes on the day of your surgery for going home in

• Medication

• Dressing gown (to cover you when wearing a theatre gown, if preferred) and slippers

• Book / magazine to read while you wait

Please bring with you the following items only. Please do not bring any valuables into hospital.

• Medication

• Washbag

• Nightwear

• Dressing gown / slippers

• Electronic devices i.e. phones can be brought into the hospital but are your own
responsibility. They can be put with your belongings whilst you are in surgery,
but there is no lockable storage available.

Following your surgery, your family and friends are welcome to bring any additional items you may need during your stay.