Knowledge and fears of anaesthesia and surgery. The Jamaican perspective.

This study was undertaken to assess patients' knowledge and perceptions, fears and concerns regarding perioperative management. 300 patients were interviewed consecutively and a questionnaire was completed for each patient. 25% admitted to having anxiety about their upcoming operation. The prevalence of preoperative fear was significantly higher in younger patients (age < 40 years, p < 0.05) and in more educated patients (secondary and tertiary levels, p < 0.001). The commonest fears were those of a morbid nature (e.g. death on the operating table). 34% of the patients did not realize that anaesthetists were qualified doctors, and only 10% recognized the central role played by anaesthetists in the monitoring of vital signs throughout an operation. There is continuing need for public education on the role of the anaesthetists in health care, and anaesthetists must ensure that preoperative concerns of their patients are adequately addressed.