A student nurse asks the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) nurse, "Why does the patient come to the PACU prior to the medical-surgical unit?" The PACU nurse explains to the student nurse that:

Question

A) The PACU allows the patient to recover from anesthesia in a stimulating environment to facilitate awakening and reorientation.
B) The PACU allows the patient to recover from the effects of anesthesia; the patients stay in PACU until they are oriented, have stable vital signs, and are without complications.
C) Frequently, patients are recovered in the medical-surgical unit, but hospitals are usually short of beds and the PACU is an excellent place to triage patients.
D) The medical-surgical unit is frequently very busy and unable accept the patient from surgery, so the patients are observed and monitored in PACU until a bed is available.

Answer 1

Ans: B
Feedback: The PACU provides care for patients while they recover from the effects of anesthesia; the patient must be oriented, have stable vital signs, and show no evidence of hemorrhage or other complications. Patients will sometimes be recovered in the intensive care unit, but this is considered an extension of the PACU. Option A is incorrect; the PACU does allow the patient to recover from anesthesia, but the environment is calm and quiet, as patients are initially disoriented and confused when they begin to awaken and reorient. Option C is incorrect; patients are not usually recovered in the medical-surgical unit. Although hospitals are occasionally short of beds, the PACU should not be used for patient triage. Option D is incorrect; in an emergency, the medical-surgical unit may be unable to accept patients from surgery. In this case, patients are observed and monitored in the PACU until a bed is available, but this is the exception to the rule.