For sick, elderly patients, surgical decision making ‘takes a village’

Surgical decision making for sick, elderly patients should be orchestrated by a multidisciplinary team, including the patient, his or her family, the surgeon, primary care physician, nurses and non-clinicians, such as social workers, advocates Laurent G. Glance, M.D., in a perspective piece published.
For this group of patients, surgery can be very risky. Glance, professor and vice-chair for research in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry believes a more patient-centred, team-based treatment approach would lead to higher quality care that matches the values and preferences of the sickest patients.
Usually, patients undergo a one-on-one consultation with their surgeon, who is frequently solely responsible for most of the decision making and management surrounding a possible surgical procedure. However, this traditional approach has potential pitfalls. For example, patients may not always be presented the full range of treatment options, such as medical treatment, less invasive surgical options, or watchful waiting.
‘Evaluating treatment options, formulating recommendations and articulating the benefits and risks to patients comprehensively require more than a well-informed or experienced surgeon,’ noted Glance, who is also a professor of Public Health Sciences and a cardiac anaesthesiologist at UR Medicine