Patient-Centeredness in the Perioperative Period—A Rapid Review of Current Research

Purpose

The indication of surgery is a critical moment in a person’s life implying different needs, feelings, or fears. The aim of the current literature review was to elucidate the prevailing utilization of the concepts ‘patient-centeredness’ and ‘person-centeredness’ within the perioperative period.

Design

A rapid review design.

Methods

Literature searches were conducted in the databases PubMed, Scopus (Elsevier), American Psychological Association PsychInfo (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), CINAHL (Ovid), and Cochrane Library in December 2022. Rayyan software was used to assess the articles. Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools were used to evaluate the quality of the included articles. Thematic analysis was used to identify themes across the articles.

Findings

The electronic database searches identified 1,967 articles. A total of 12 articles were assessed in full text against the inclusion and exclusion criteria, and finally, a total of seven articles were included. The articles originated from six countries, employed disparate methodological approaches, and featured a heterogeneous array of participants representing various health care settings. Patient-centeredness held the mantle as the most prominently used concept across the seven articles, whereas person-centeredness emerged as the least frequently explored concept. One theme was identified across the articles; Preparedness. This was related to shared decision-making and information pre, peri- and postoperative.

Conclusions

This rapid review suggests that patient preparedness, particularly through shared decision-making and providing information, is a recurring theme in the limited studies on patient- or centeredness in the perioperative context. The fact that only one single study focuses on person-centered care underscores the pressing need for a comprehensive re-evaluation of modern perioperative care.