Sometimes the smallest fix is a frozen one.
Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford is giving patients recovering from surgery popsicles to help tackle side effects of anesthesia.
Staff are offering the sweet frozen treats as part of a quality improvement project looking at whether ice can reduce common post-operative symptoms, including thirst, sore throat, nausea and discomfort.
Royal Surrey Charity funded the project, which was set up to improve patient comfort and experience after anesthesia.
The hospital said the anesthetic department developed it in collaboration with recovery nurses and the University of Surrey.
Dr. Kai Patel, consultant anesthetist and project lead, said: “This has been a true multidisciplinary effort involving anesthetics , recovery nursing, researchers and charity support.
“Sometimes small changes can make a big difference to how patients feel after surgery.”
The project was secured through the Trust’s Bid for Better initiative, which the hospital described as a “Dragon’s Den”-style process where colleagues pitch ideas to improve patient care.
The team will continue collecting data over the coming weeks to assess the impact on patient experience and recovery outcomes.
The hospital said early feedback from patients and staff has been extremely positive.
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