The Preoperative Interview

Further studies need to be done to determine the impact preoperative visits have on the perioperative nurse's empathy level. The results of this study could be confirmed, or refuted, if a study with more subjects was conducted over a longer period of time. Also, subjects in both the control and experimental groups should be chosen randomly and should be from the same institution. To measure the long-term effect of preoperative visits on empathy levels, a study could be conducted that measures the levels at various times (eg, six months to a year following the first study). Other evaluations of empathy levels, such as observer rating and patient rating, could be used to supplement nurses self-rating scores to avoid using one standard instrument and rating scale. Few conclusions can be drawn from this limited study, but it does help nurses realize that preoperative interviews can help the nurse become more aware of the surgical patient as a human being. This increased awareness may help the nurse function more effectively and efficiently in helping the patient during intraoperative care.