Before your operation, you will have a pre-operative assessment. The purpose of this is to check your health, understand any medical conditions you may have and make sure you are as fit as possible before your surgery.  This is important because it helps reduce risks during and after surgery and enables us to plan the safest anaesthetic for you.

The preoperative assessment also gives you the chance to ask any questions and consider what you can do yourself to prepare for your surgery.

NHS Grampian now uses a digital pre-assessment application called MyPreOp (provided by Ultramed). All patents will be sent a text message or email with a link to a health questionnaire. It is important to complete this health questionnaire in full as soon as you can. This will enable us to begin the preoperative assessment process and is an essential part of your surgical journey. If you require help to fill in the health questionnaire you could ask a family member to help. 

The information helps the team plan your care, give you advice about getting ready for surgery (for example, managing medicines or fasting), and reduce the risk of problems during and after your operation.

What will I be asked in the pre-operative assessment questionnaire?

In the digital questionnaire you will be asked about

• allergies
• all areas of your current health, including physical health, mental health and general fitness
• any past medical history and previous surgery, including previous anaesthetics.
• any relevant family medical history
• medications you are prescribed, and other medicines which are not prescribed by your doctor
• recreational drug use
• your smoking history and alcohol consumption

All of which are extremely important when doing a preoperative assessment.

Whilst you complete the questionnaire you may notice there are links to information which may help you as you are preparing for your surgery. These links are also available on this website, should you wish to read them again or discuss with your family. There is also the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

What happens after I have submitted the questionnaire?

Once your health questionnaire is returned it will be reviewed by a member of our pre-assessment team. This may be all the information that we need, or we may need to arrange a telephone appointment to discuss some of your answers. Some patients will need to come to the preoperative assessment clinic (in either Woodend Hospital or Dr Gray’s Hospital) for a consultation with a specialist nurse, or to have tests performed. You will be contacted by clinic staff if this applies to you and an appointment will be arranged. 

• Blood tests
• ECG (non invasive heart test)
• Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs)
• Spirometry

Occasionally we may require more detailed tests such as echocardiogram, but this would be discussed with you prior to arranging these.

As part of your appointment, you may also see an anaesthetist to further discuss your anaesthetic. You will have time at this stage to ask more questions, and we will work with you to decide what is best for you (this is called shared decision making).  You can find out more about this on the Realistic Medicine website.

If you have any major health changes or have started any new medications after you have answered your pre-assessment questions it is very important to contact the preoperative assessment clinic to let them know. 

What can I do to get as fit as possible before my operation?

If your operation is not urgent, the nurse or anaesthetist may suggest steps to improve your health beforehand (sometimes called “optimisation”). This could include extra tests or starting treatment, and we will work closely with your surgical team.

What information will I be given before my operation?

• your proposed surgery date and when to attend the hospital
• how to prepare for surgery
• when to stop eating and drinking before your operation
• which usual medicines to take or stop before coming into hospital
• what to bring with you
• whether you need to stay overnight, and for how long

You will also be sent the following information by post:

• a next of kin update form with a pre-paid envelope
• information on the patient hotel (if applicable)
• a letter with the date, time and location of your surgery, and a map