Paul Wicker 
Perioperative Practice at a Glance 

From the publishers of the market-leading at a
Glance series comes this new title on all aspects of
caring for patients in the perioperative environment. From
pre-operative care, through the anaesthetic and surgical phases to
post-operation and recovery, this easy-to-read, quick-reference
resource uses the unique at a Glance format to
quickly convey need-to-know information in both images and text,
allowing vital knowledge to be revised promptly and
efficiently.

* Brings together all aspects of perioperative practice in one
easy-to-read book

* Moves through the patient journey, providing support to
perioperative practitioners in all aspects of their role

* Covers key information on perioperative emergencies

* Includes material on advanced skills to support Advanced
Practitioners

* Each topic is covered in two pages, allowing for easy revision
and reference

This is a must-have resource for operating department
practitioners and students, theatre nurses and nursing students,
and trainee surgeons and anaesthetists.

Table of Content

Preface vii

Acknowledgements viii

Surgical and anaesthetic abbreviations and acronyms ix

How to use your textbook xiii

Part 1 Introduction to perioperative practice 1

1 Preoperative patient preparation 2

2 Theatre scrubs and personal protective equipment (PPE) 4

3 Preventing the transmission of infection 6

4 Preparing and managing equipment 8

5 Perioperative patient care 10

6 Surgical Safety Checklist – Part 1 12

7 Surgical Safety Checklist – Part 2 14

8 Legal and professional accountability 16

9 Interprofessional teamworking 18

Part 2 Anaesthesia 21

10 Preparing anaesthetic equipment 22

11 Checking the anaesthetic machine 24

12 Anatomy and physiology of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems 26

13 Anaesthetic drugs 28

14 Perioperative fluid management 30

15 Monitoring the patient 32

16 General anaesthesia 34

17 Local anaesthesia 36

18 Regional anaesthesia 38

Part 3 Surgery 41

19 Roles of the circulating and scrub team 42

20 Basic surgical instruments 44

21 Surgical scrubbing 46

22 Surgical positioning 48

23 Maintaining the sterile field 50

24 Sterilisation and disinfection 52

25 Swab and instrument counts 54

26 Working with electrosurgery 56

27 Tourniquet management 58

28 Wounds and dressings 60

Part 4 Recovery 63

29 Introducing the recovery room 64

30 Patient handover 66

31 Postoperative patient care – Part 1 68

32 Postoperative patient care – Part 2 70

33 Monitoring in recovery 72

34 Maintaining the airway 74

35 Common postoperative problems 76

36 Managing postoperative pain 78

37 Managing postoperative nausea and vomiting 80

Part 5 Perioperative emergencies 83

38 Caring for the critically ill 84

39 Airway problems 86

40 Rapid sequence induction 88

41 Bleeding problems 90

42 Malignant hyperthermia 92

43 Cardiovascular problems 94

44 Electrosurgical burns 96

45 Venous thromboembolism 98

46 Latex allergy 100

Part 6 Advanced surgical practice 103

47 Assisting the surgeon 104

48 Shaving, marking, prepping and draping 106

49 Retraction of tissues 108

50 Suture techniques and materials 110

51 Haemostatic techniques 112

52 Laparoscopic surgery 114

53 Orthopaedic surgery 116

54 Cardiac surgery 118

55 Things to do after surgery 120

References and further reading 122

Index 144

About the author

Paul Wicker is Head of Perioperative Studies, Faculty of Health, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, Lancashire, UK. He is also Consultant Editor of the Journal of Operating Department Practice (published by Mark Allen Publishers) and author of Wiley title Caring for the Perioperative Patient.