Ambulatory Anesthesia in 2023: the need to adapt to a new reality

Are you aware that we currently head deep into the third decade of the new millennium? If so, there is a question, which needs to be answered: in which direction is our specialty developing these days?

Among many other things, the answer includes the fact that up to 70% of surgical procedures are fit to be performed outside the hospital in an ambulatory setup. It does not matter how you call it: minimally invasive surgery, outpatient surgery or same-day surgery.  The length of the surgical procedure is not important anymore, operations up to three or four hours can be performed in an ambulatory setting.

The common denominator is the new reality of the patient, who spends less than 24 hours in a surgical facility, being discharged at home in a stable condition with no risks for complications.

This new reality created the need for discussions about how to deal with the daily aspects of such a special medical facility.

A few of years ago we initiated the first European Symposium on Ambulatory Anesthesia and Analgesia, which we called it AAA2017. Two years later we organized the second one, the AAA2019. 

Those scientific events had a clear impact on how we understand today what has to be done in order to make surgery possible and successful in an ambulatory setup.

During the first two symposiums we discussed the various organizational aspects of ambulatory anesthesia and emphasized the fact that its requirements are as complex as for in-hospital procedures: up to date equipment, various anesthesia techniques, well equipped recovery rooms, as well as clear guidelines for discharging the patient home.

We also reached the conclusion that even very old patients, or those who suffer from chronic but stable diseases, are still fit candidates for ambulatory surgery and anesthesia.

But we also very well understood the need for team work in the operating rooms, an absolute necessity for assuring the patient safety and a favorable outcome of surgery.

This is the reason why the third symposium, the 3rd AAA in 2022 would have a special feature. This time we will include through discussions in collaboration with our perennial colleagues, the surgeons.

Every panel will include the presence of a surgeon who would bring his/her own view on the way things are to be done in order to assure the wellbeing of the patient and a successful treatment. 

We do expect controversies and different ideas, but this is at the core of teamwork in general. We expect that at the end, common conclusions would be reached and new directions for collaboration would be the results of the discussions.

Initially planned for 2021, we postponed the 3rd symposium until April 2023 due to the Covid pandemic. For the latest instalment, we will extend the symposium to include a day dedicated to discussions about what we can learn from these 2 years of global pandemic.

We invite you, the participants, to take part at the discussions on the various topics selected for this third AAA Symposium.

We are glad to inform you that this event, as the previous one, is organized in conjunction with the American Society for Ambulatory Anesthesia (SAMBA) and we will be happy to host some of its prominent speakers in our scientific program. The meeting is also planned to be endorsed by European Society of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Car. The three-day program includes panels, workshops and plenary lectures.

We are confident that at the end of the third AAA, the audience will be able to better understand the particularities of ambulatory surgery and anesthesia, and once back home, each of us will feel that the congress positively contributed to the success of our daily activity in the ambulatory surgery setup.

We wish everybody a fruitful congress and a pleasant stay in Zurich.