Surgery Center of the Lakelands wants to make your surgical experience as pleasant as possible. This information will answer many of the questions you may have about your surgery. Please review this information carefully.

Prior to the Day of Surgery

The following instructions are very important and MUST be followed or it may be necessary to cancel your surgery.

• Complete all required pre-operative testing at the Tower Point campus of Self Regional Healthcare three days prior to your surgery if applicable.
• Please bathe with antibacterial soap the night before surgery.
  (If your surgeon provides you with an antibacterial soap to use, please defer to their instructions).
• In most cases, you will be contacted by phone prior to your surgery scheduled date to have a pre-operative assessment completed by our nursing staff. This appointment will be scheduled by your surgeon’s office. At that time you will also discuss your insurance and financial obligations with our business office staff.
• Please inform the nurse of all the medications you are currently taking including any natural and/or herbal supplements in their original bottle to your pre-operative appointment. The nursing staff needs to have an accurate accounting of your medication history.
• You will be instructed by the nursing staff as to which medications you should and should not take the morning of surgery.
• Do not take aspirin, aspirin products, Vitamin E, Motrin, Ibuprofen, Aleve, Advil or any herb or garlic supplement for one week prior to your surgery, unless otherwise instructed by your doctor.
• Tell your doctor if you take Coumadin, Plavix or other blood thinners.
• Notify your doctor and the surgery center staff if you have an insulin pump, internal or external device such as a pacemaker or defibrillator.
• DO NOT eat or drink anything after midnight the night before your surgery, including water, juice, coffee, chewing gum or mints, unless instructed otherwise by the surgery center pre-operative nurse.
• Notify your doctor and the surgery center staff IMMEDIATELY if you suspect you are pregnant.
• You must make arrangements for an adult to drive you home from the center after your procedure and to oversee your care for the first 24 hours following surgery.
• Gather required information needed for the day of surgery, including insurance cards, legal documents (such as Power of Attorney or Guardianship documents), completed registration forms and any other information your doctor has asked you to bring to the surgical center.

The Day of Surgery

Please follow these guidelines on the day of your surgery.

• If you are sick on the evening before or morning of surgery, please call the center at (864) 725-7507 to speak with one of the nurses to determine if surgery will be canceled.
• If you need to cancel surgery for any reason, please call the center and your surgeon as soon as possible at (864) 725-7507 to let us know.
• Take all medications on the morning of surgery that your pre-operative nurse instructed you to take with a sip of water.
• Please bring all the medications you are currently taking including any natural and/or herbal supplements in their original bottle with you on the morning of surgery if you have not already done so in your pre-operative appointment. It is very important for the surgeon, anesthesiologist and nursing staff to have an accurate accounting of your current medications.
• Please do not use any make-up, perfumes, hairspray or deodorant. Remove all nail polish.
• You may brush your teeth and gargle, but do not swallow any water.
• Wear loose fitting comfortable clothing. These garments need to be able to accommodate large bulky dressings and tender surgical sites.
• Please leave jewelry and all other valuables at home. The surgery center can not be responsible for lost items.
• If you have an inhaler prescribed, please bring the inhaler to the center with you on the day of surgery.
• Please refrain from smoking the day of surgery.
• Please bring any support equipment you usually use at home such as walkers, crutches.
• Please leave home in plenty of time to arrive at the time specified during your pre-operative call. If you are running late, please call the center at 864-725-7502 to let us know.
• You will have an opportunity to speak with your surgeon and anesthesiologist prior to surgery. Please be prepared to ask any questions you may have.

After Your Surgery

• After surgery, in our fully equipped Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU), a specially trained PACU nurse will monitor and care for you while you are waking from anesthesia. Pain and nausea medications will be administered as needed. The medical staff will discharge you to the second phase Stepdown area when assured that you are in stable condition. Once in the Stepdown area, you will continue to be monitored until you are ready to go home. At this time, a family member or friend may be with you. Specific discharge instructions will be reviewed with you and the responsible adult driving you home. You will be discharged home when you are reasonably comfortable, awake and alert, pain is manageable and you have minimal nausea. You must be driven home by a responsible adult.
• For 24 hours after surgery requiring anesthesia, you should have a responsible adult to assist in caring for you. Do not make any important decisions, do not drive, do not operate equipment, do not drink alcohol and do not take any medications not prescribed by or acknowledged by your doctor.
• Once you are home, call your doctor if you experience any of the following:
• Persistent nausea and vomiting
• Fever greater than 101 degrees F
• Excessive pain not controlled by prescribed pain medication
• Any unexpected bleeding or wound drainage
• Extreme redness or swelling at the operative site area
• A pronounced skin rash
• After spinal anesthesia, a headache not relieved by Tylenol or a similar non-aspirin medication

A nurse will call you on the business day following your surgery to check on your condition. Feel free at that time to ask the nurse any questions that may have arisen since surgery. At any time after your surgery please feel free to call the center or the physician’s office with questions or concerns. After hours, call the doctors answering service and the doctor will call you back. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please call 911 or go immediately to the nearest emergency room.
At discharge, you will be given a Patient Satisfaction Survey as a part of our Quality Assessment and Performance Improvement Program. Please share your comments regarding your experience at Surgery Center of the Lakelands. We are interested in your comments and share them with our staff as a part of our efforts to provide the best quality care.

Thank you for choosing Surgery Center of the Lakelands.