How Psychologists Prepare Patients For Surgery

This article addresses the key roles that pre-surgical psychological assessment and preparation can play in surgical outcomes. The role of psychologists in providing psychological screening and assessment is described, together with the critical roles they can play in detecting and addressing potential barriers to effective post-operative recovery and in helping to maximize the restoration and maintenance of positive health outcomes.

Part of the APA Monitor's CE Corner article series.

New format: After reading the CE Corner article, you will be asked to complete a "Commitment-to-Change" (CTC) exercise. The CTC exercise is designed to help facilitate the translation of your learning into practice. Completion of the CTC is required prior to the completion of the CE Test based on the APA Monitor CE Corner article.

This product is not included in the APA Unlimited CE program.

New York state psychologists: This program is not currently in compliance with the unique requirements imposed by the New York State Board of Education for New York licensed psychologists CE.

• Describe how presurgical evaluations work.
• Discuss the research on ways presurgical evaluations improve outcomes for patients undergoing surgery.
• Describe efforts to improve the accuracy of surgical assessments.

Rebecca Clay