Assessing patients’ knowledge of anaesthetists and anaesthesia
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Assessing patients’ knowledge of anaesthetists and anaesthesia
IRAS ID
320315
Contact name
Oliver J H Baker
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 6 months, 1 days
Research summary
Research Summary
The literature suggests that patients around the world have little knowledge of the role of an anaesthetist or of what anaesthesia involves. What few studies have been completed assessing UK patients’ knowledge of these areas are now almost 30 years old and this study questions whether awareness of anaesthetics as a speciality has improved. The authors suggest that, despite an increased focus on anaesthetics as a speciality during the Covid-19 pandemic, knowledge remains poor of the role of anaesthetists and what anaesthesia involves. This single centre cross-sectional study aims to use a simple questionnaire on day case surgical patients, before pre-operative assessment and after their surgery, to assess their knowledge of anaesthetists and their perceptions of anaesthesia. The before and after element will help to see whether attending pre-assessment and day case surgery changes their perceptions.
Summary of Results
Background: Previous UK studies found that only 50e67% of patients are aware that anaesthetists are qualified doctors, and public knowledge of anaesthetists’ roles was poor. This study aimed to assess patients’ knowledge of anaesthetists and anaesthesia, to identify if there has been any improvement over the past two decades. A secondary aim was to determine if exposure to anaesthetists during day case surgery improved patient knowledge.
Methods: This UK-based, single-centre, cross-sectional study included 150 patients attending for day case surgery. Patients were given a questionnaire on their knowledge of anaesthetists and anaesthesia both before and after surgery.
Patients were included if they had not yet been pre-assessed by an anaesthetist, if they were over 18 years old and if they were not healthcare professionals.
Results: All 150 patients completed both preoperative and postoperative questionnaires. 51.3% were female and the median age was 51.6 years (range 18e90 years). Before surgery, only 39.3% of patients knew that anaesthetists were doctors, despite 82.4% having had previous anaesthetics. After surgery, this reduced to 38%. There was no significant improvement in patients’ knowledge of anaesthetists’ roles both inside and outside of operating theatres in postoperative questionnaires (p>0.05). Patients most frequently recognised that anaesthetists work in operating theatres (80%), intensive care units (54%), medical emergency teams (52.7%), and on labour wards (50%). Furthermore, 76.6% of patients recalled seeing an anaesthetist before previous operations and 81.3% were aware that general anaesthesia involved volatile gases or intravenous drugs.
Conclusions: This study found that many patients are not aware that anaesthetists are medically qualified. Exposure to anaesthetists on the day of surgery did not improve patients’ knowledge of the roles of anaesthetists or their knowledge of anaesthesia itself.REC name
West Midlands - Edgbaston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/WM/0052
Date of REC Opinion
14 Mar 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion