CANCELLATION OF PEDIATRIC OUTPATIENT SURGERY - ECONOMIC AND EMOTIONALIMPLICATIONS FOR PATIENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES

Study Objective: To determine the cause and timing of case cancellatio n in a pediatric outpatient surgical population, and to examine the ec onomic and emotional impact of such cancellations on patients and thei r families. Design: Questionnaire survey. Setting: Outpatient surgery unit of a large university children's hospital. Participants: 127 pare nts of children whose elective outpatient surgery had been cancelled. Interventions: A total of 200 questionnaires were mailed to the parent s of children who had their outpatient surgery cancelled.