Tom Wainwright – Deputy Head of ORI

Associate Professor Tom Wainwright has published an article looking at how Enhanced Recovery after Surgery (ERAS) should be implemented following the Covid-19 pandemic.

The article highlights how implementing the quality improvement method will help to manage the large volume of patients requiring joint replacement surgery once regular operating resumes.

Tom said: “This new perspective article highlights the role ERAS can play in helping our health systems recover after the Covid-19 pandemic. When regular operating returns there will be a huge surgical backlog. ERAS and day-case or outpatient surgical pathways will therefore be needed to maximise capacity. I think an exciting development will be the integration of new technologies to allow remote/virtual care that have become more popular as a result of the pandemic. However, as always, strong leadership and the use of a recognised quality improvement method to help tailor improvement efforts to local contexts will be needed in order to ensure that the focus of ERAS remains on providing better and not just faster care.”

The article can be accessed here.

Wainwright TW. Enhanced Recovery after Surgery (ERAS) for Hip and Knee Replacement—Why and How it Should be Implemented Following the Covid-19 Pandemic. Medicina 2021.