Patient Contact with Healthcare Professionals after Elective Tonsillectomy

Abstract

Objective —To assess the amount and causes of patient contact with healthcare professionals after elective tonsillectomy.

Material and Methods —This was a prospective study. All consecutive patients undergoing elective tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectomy in 1997 received a questionnaire concerning the post-discharge period.

Results —A total of 276 patients (93.6%) answered questions regarding post-discharge contact. After their discharge, 43.8% of patients contacted healthcare professionals. Pain was the leading indication for telephone contact, and hemorrhage for visits in person. Information given over the telephone was sufficient in 49.5% of cases. Telephone contact was followed by a visit in person in the case of hemorrhage in 88.9% of patients and in the case of pain in 34.1%. Contact was made most frequently in the older age groups.

Conclusions —Although the patients repeatedly received both written and oral information, nearly half of them still contacted healthcare professionals during the recovery period. Frequent post-tonsillectomy contact should be taken into account when the financial and personnel resources of day surgery units are evaluated. In order to reduce the amount of post-tonsillectomy contact with healthcare professionals, careful attention must be paid to the quality of patient counseling prior to discharge.

• adenotonsillectomy
• age
• complications
• consultation
• discharge
• indications
• inpatients
• post-discharge

Valtonen H, Qvarnberg Y, Blomgren K. Patient contact with healthcare professionals after elective tonsillectomy. Acta Otolaryngol 2004; 124: 1086–1089.

Valtonen H, Qvarnberg Y, Blomgren K. Patient contact with healthcare professionals after elective tonsillectomy. Acta Otolaryngol 2004; 124: 1086–1089.