Impact of a Brief Intervention on Patient Anxiety Prior to Day Surgery

Patients anticipating surgical procedures experience significant anxiety, resulting in adverse outcomes and increased expenditures. Research has investigated the impact of anxiety-reducing interventions, frequently the provision of surgical information, with inconsistent results. The present study (N = 98) examined preference for information, or “monitor-blunter” coping style, and the impact of a pre-surgical phone call from an anesthesiologist on anxiety in which treatment group participants (n = 51) dictated the amount of information received. Monitors were hypothesized to desire more information than blunters, and changes in anxiety for monitors/blunters were hypothesized to be moderated by length of call. Monitors and blunters demonstrated equal call durations and anxiety levels remained equivalent across groups. Findings and implications for future research are discussed.