title: Preoperative blood tests: an expensive tick box exercise.
abstract: The purpose of preoperative investigations is to provide diagnostic and prognostic information. Preoperative tests requested for a cohort of patients admitted for simple trauma related procedures were retrospectively reviewed. Adherence to the NICE guidelines was found to be 5%. No result from a blood test led to a change in the management of the patient. The authors believe that implementation of the NICE guidelines will reduce clinical time and result in huge financial savings for individual institutions.
authors.affiliation: Whittington Hospital, London. ppastides@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pastides
authors.forename: Szymon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tokarczyk
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ismail
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ahearne
authors.forename: Khaled M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Sarraf
authors.forename: Khaled
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sarraf
mesh_terms: D017046:Cost Savings; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006403:Hematologic Tests; D006801:Humans; D011300:Preoperative Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies