DEMAND ON PRIMARY HEALTH-CARE AFTER DAY SURGERY

We have audited the frequency and nature of demands made on general pr actitioners, and the rate of surgical and anaesthetic complications wi thin the first 7 days after day surgery. Semi-structured questionnaire s were posted to the general practitioners of patients who attended th e hospital's day care ward for a surgical procedure over a 6 month per iod. In all, 1798 questionnaires were sent, of which 1533 (85.3%) were returned. A total of 247 (16.7%) patients consulted their general pra ctitioners after day surgery, the principal reason being pain (113 pat ients). who underwent incisional intermediate had the highest rate (31 .5%) of general practitioner consultations. This audit has quantified the workload which day surgery places upon general practitioners. It a lso demonstrates the importance of categorising the various procedures performed on a day case basis when examining patient outcome. Patient s who underwent non-incisional minor surgery consulted their general p ractitioner less often than those who underwent incisional minor surge ry, who in turn consulted their practitioner less often than those who underwent incisional intermediate surgery. It seems likely that an in crease in workload for general practitioners is inevitable if more com plex procedures are performed on a day case basis.