To ask anyone in the NHS how day surgery lists are determined?

You have no idea that you're going to be sitting until 6pm. Have you called the day surgery unit to clarify if they have separate morning and afternoon lists and what is the latest time you will get your op? If they confirm it's one list for the whole day then delay dinner the day before or have supper. You are deliberately making thing more uncomfortable for yourself.

I had an op recently. Afternoon list, so had to arrive by 12 noon. I was towards the end of the list because my op was longer than most others. However, another lady when being booked in, decided that she wasn't going to have her operation that day, so I moved up a slot. Still didn't go to theatre until 4pm. I think the gentleman going to theatre after me was an emergency so I was lucky he arrived later. Everyone involved with my care seemed to be doing the best they could to make it as pleasant as possible. I had to go to A&E recently and definitely saw a doctor quicker than expected because he thought, from looking at my notes, that I was an easy case and probably wouldn't need further tests. I trust the experts to make the best decisions for the maximum number.

I tend to organise my lists to have two routine cases inbthe morning and a complex one in the afternoon.

Very hard to cancel the list at 1pm if the morning overruns a bit, if you flip it and do the long case first, and it overruns, they'll often cancel a short case from the end.

It doesn't make me popular, but it gets more cases done.

It is like this in the hospital I work in, not on every list but in orthopaedics, ENT and urology it often happens. The surgeons are trained in both adults and paediatrics and they have equipment they can use on all ages in the theatre complex. The adults are booked onto the afternoon list though so come in at 12pm for admission.

How does that work because paediatricians wont treat adults and the equipment used on children is about a third of the size. Iv never heard of this in any trust iv had surgery in.

Nobody has said you will be last. You might be First. But it’s best to go prepared knowing there may be delays.

You seem quite rigid, are you always like this? If I had an operation the next day I would be eating my food at the last minute possible!

You sound quite over the top anxious and irrational. Have you got anybody in real life you can talk to?

When I had my hysterectomy (laparoscopic robotic surgery) I was first on the list.

Went down at 8.30am and left hospital at 8pm.

Im not sure what patients they had after me but this was a gynae surgeon and my operation although major was quite “simple” iyswim?

Also any one with allergies like latex etc is also done earlier

You'll just be told ''bully for you'' as I was when I explained that my 9 year old had to stop eating 2 days before his last bowel surgery and couldn't eat until 2 days afterwards.

He had a stoma reversal and even when he could eat, it was plain food only and tiny bites for the first few days. It was such a gruelling process, especially for a child but as you said, sometimes it's just what has to be done.

This has got to be a windup, right?

I went in at 8am and was the second from past one called in the end (around 5pm from what I can remember). I was getting quite.ancious by then and the nurses gave me a preop sedative that helped a bit.

It was annoying but why not me? Someone has to be last don't they?

I was grateful to all the hardworking staff that gave me a successful op. Not focusing on what time I went down. Being hungry for a day is a minor inconvenience, sorry but you sound awful.

Unless this is misdirected nerves about the op, in which case you're going to be fine, and chances are you will be seen in the morning if that's what they've said.

There is no guarantee you will be left waiting until 6pm, please don't go into things so riled up.

Fasting for 1 day will not cause you ongoing harm unless you are diabetic etc which you've not said you are.

Often simple daycases will go first in my trust but it is total pot luck as to who else is booked onto your list. If there are cancer cases then they will take priority as if theatre overran and they got cancelled, there is more of a threat to their health.

It absolutely isn't ideal to be waiting all day in a day surgery unit but it isn't staff not doing their jobs. It is exactly the same in private hospitals. There is a balance between patient comfort and theatre efficiency and having patients come in at multiple staggered start times has been proven to reduce theatre efficiency meaning less people get their surgeries. Its all a balancing act.

Lots of hospitals mix and match a bit.

Iv never been to a hospital where its been mixed.

I also got listed for a C section after a failed induction, was nil by mouth all day and kept getting bumped down the list but fully understandable as they must have been getting more urgent cases in, at 7pm they put me on a drip for fluids due to fasting but then cancelled me fully at 9pm, next morning waited from 7am again to go down and went down at 2pm, the year after when I had another section I arrived and was told I was 2nd but the woman before me hadn’t fasted correctly so I was moved to 1st and went down before I had even unpacked my stuff

I work in patient safety. There are many reasons for the order of a theatre list. As people have said, children, people with co-morbidities that may be impacted by fasting or anaesthetic will go early on the list. For daycase procedures, the ones which the surgeon thinks will recover quickest will go near the end of the list, giving the more complex or poorly/frail people more time to be monitored before discharge.

You can usually sip water up until you go to theatre - if you're worried about 'starving' then check your admission info but it may be possible to have some toast or porridge late this evening.

Some surgeons prefer to get complex patients out the way first, some prefer to do the simple cases first. The best advice is not to get all stressed out about it, it won't change anything. When you are admitted and speak to the consultant and anaesthetist in the morning before the list starts you can ask then about your likely position on the list. Please don't walk out as then that is a wasted appointment that someone else may have been desperate for.

I hope you get some good rest tonight and the procedure goes well.

That’s not necessarily the case.

And now I’ve RTFT…. You sound like you should go private!!

is this a rage bait thread??? Even the “healthiest” individuals can have complications! I went in for a routine D&C to a day hospital when I had a miscarriage, ended up blue lighted to the big city trauma hospital!! So no it doesn’t matter if you’re “healthy” or not! Patient safety is priority!

also you do realise you can literally get to the anaesthetic room and your op get cancelled? For whatever reason ? Had that happen too!

be grateful you have the nhs to DO your op in the first place and having one day where you can’t eat what you want when you want isn’t the end of the world! The nhs is not perfect but we are lucky to have it and despite your anxiety your attitude stinks! I hope you treat the staff better!!

if you want to be in control of every step of the way and be first or second because you think you deserve to be because “you’re paying for it”
go private 🙄

It’s not quite clear at all!

and you won’t die if you don’t eat

if you walk at 2pm because you’re sulking not only will you have wasted your time, you’ll have wasted the hospital’s time (and precious resources) but you’ve also taken a space that someone else could have taken.

you really are quite unreasonable

Sometimes you have to do it - my last one I had to do bowel prep so stopped eating Wed am, surgery Thursday and I didn’t eat until Thursday 8pm

You’ve been waiting for 2 years for surgery …

and u are moaning about what time you are going into surgery ????

OMG !!!!

you are totally stressing yourself out about what the time will be, if you are going to be starving to death, feeling anxiety …

so what ??
everybody is in the same boat !!
like you said - it’s surgery, not a fucking party, so treat it with the seriousness it deserves,

turn up and wait your turn -
as a young person would say : you are not the main character here !!!

they are trying to get as much done as efficiently as possible within clinical parameters, none of which you seem to have any insight about,

dig deep and prepare yourself for a day at the hospital, you have waited 2 years !!

you never know, you might get bumped for a more priority case on the day !!

so be grateful it goes ahead at all, never mind some anxiety- normal - and a hungry belly which ain’t gonna kill you !!!

Its unlikely to be children first in op case as she wont be having a paediatric surgeon. They will be in a completely seperate part of the hospital and surgical suite as the equipment used for children is completely different and so are the drs

My underweight (medical reasons) 5 year old had to wait ages (fasted) for a hernia op as she was the oldest there. Didn't go in til after lunch and hadn't been allowed to eat since the evening before. If she can manage you probably can op.

If its day surgery it wont be 6pm as they will want to go home. Iv had day surgery across multiple trusts and their usually going home about 5/6 pm and you need a few hours to recover from GA. I'd honestly just be greatful if its not cancelled no matter what time of day you have it. Fasting is way more annoying then. As you have to do it all over again.

Read the news if you’re worried about starving - you’ll see what it truly is.

simple cases on fit and healthy patients are nearly always done last. Why should someone with ill health have to ‘wait around all day’ as you put it?

ive never known those on hospital transport to be given priority

We were told youngest first for paediatric as they've been fasted overnight and the youngest cope least well with not being allowed to eat or drink.

With a scheduled c section we were told it was done based on complexity/urgency.