ASSESSING THE EXPECTED OUTCOMES OF ORTHOPEDIC SURGICAL CARE FOR CHILDREN

A sample of 175 parents of children treated operatively for orthopedic problems were interviewed before surgery to ascertain their expectati ons with regard to specific functional changes postoperatively. They w ere interviewed about changes from 6 to 12 months after surgery. Medic al records of a sample of this group were reviewed for any notes about functional status. Of this group, 54% said a specific function named preoperatively was ''much better.'' Only a third of the parents from M exico understood the nature of the procedure performed 6 to 12 months postoperatively, and only 40% of medical records contained notes about functional status pre- or postoperatively.