Patient Safety

摘要

MORE than any other spe-cialty, anesthesiology, especially its perioperative medicine component, focuses on patient safety. This reflects the concern that surgery rather than anesthesia is the primary intervention for patient benefit. According to this logic, any risk from anesthesia only detracts from patient benefit (although it is recognized that surgery cannot be performed safely without anesthesia). The specialty has historically focused in reducing intraoperative anesthesia-related morbidity and mortality, and has been remarkably successful. Thanks to advances in drugs and devices as well as medical education and understanding; intraoperative anesthesia now has an enviable record of patient safety. Yet, the perioperative period carries risks of major morbidity and mortality manifold greater than those classically defined as anesthesia related. As medical shepherds of patient safety through the perioperative period, anesthesiologists are now tackling these larger dangers.