title: Preoperative holding areas.
abstract: The preoperative holding area of the past was a waiting area for patients before surgery. Today it has evolved into a specialty area that is staffed by perianesthesia nurses who provide nursing assessment, monitoring, teaching, and emotional support to patients in a fast-paced environment. This area of specialized nursing holds many opportunities for perianesthesia nurses to further develop their practice and achieve significant contributions to successful outcomes for both patients and their families.
authors.affiliation: Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. ellenes@aol.com
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Sullivan
mesh_terms: D005160:Facility Design and Construction; D022143:Family Nursing / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007430:Intraoperative Care; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D013527:Perioperative Nursing / Q000379:methods*