The Effects of Surgery Cancellation on Patients, Families, and Staff: A Prospective Cross-Sectional Study

This study aimed to investigate the effects of surgery cancellation, as a common and never-ending problem within preoperative care, and its related factors on patients, family members, and medical staff. The research design implemented a prospective cross-sectional type. This study was conducted for four months in two main teaching/general medical centers. The data collection tool was comprised of three researcher-made questionnaires for patients, families, and medical staff, separately. The samples also included a total number of 315 patients, family members, and medical staff. The results revealed that the frequency distribution of all physical and emotional effects was higher in men than in women though it was not statistically significant. Each patient had been fasting for an average of 13.26 hours until the announcement of surgery cancellation. The most prevalent physical effects in the patients were hunger, thirst, and headache, respectively. The average cost of each surgery cancellation for the patients was almost twice that for the family members. There was a significant correlation between emotional effects in the patients and the families and the reason for cancellation and informants. Each surgery cancellation increased fasting time in patients by an average of 5 to 7 hours. Cancellation also correspondingly led to economic harms for the patients and the families, waste of operating room resources, and duplications. Since the most common reasons for surgery cancellation were patient-related and a significant correlation was observed between the reason for cancellation and emotional effects in the patients and the families, our recommendation is to strengthen patient protocols in terms of preoperative preparation and to review admission and information processes for patients undergoing surgeries.