Patients heading into surgery are often anxious and full of questions. Fortunately, HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality offers a new brochure aimed at answering those questions and directing patients to more resources.
"Having Surgery? What You Need to Know" is available in English -- and in Spanish as "Va a Tener una Cirugia? Lo Que Usted Necesita Saber." The brochure covers such topics as:
- why surgery may be needed, what alternatives might be available and information about relative costs;
- benefits and risks;
- how to get more information, including seeking second opinions and asking about anesthesia and recovery;
- how to determine a surgeon's qualifications, and how to find out more about a particular surgery and about the hospital where it will be performed;
- additional resources for more information; and
- other questions to ask a family physician or surgeon.
The brochure may be downloaded as a free PDF in English (PDF file: 16 pages / 490 KB. More about PDFs.) or Spanish (PDF file: 16 pages / 490 KB. More about PDFs.). Alternatively, the brochure in either language may be ordered by calling the AHRQ Publications Clearinghouse at (800) 358-9295 or sending an e-mail to ahrqpubs@ahrq.gov.
