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Practice Consideration
Post-Anesthesia Care / PACU (Practice Consideration)
Last AANA revision: 2024
PACU phase: continuous monitoring + intervention until patient meets discharge criteria (Aldrete ≥ 9, Phase II / PADSS for ambulatory). Anesthesia provider remains responsible until handoff.
Key points
- 1.Standardized handoff: patient, procedure, anesthetic, vitals trend, fluids, blood loss, complications, postop plan
- 2.Aldrete: activity, respiration, circulation, consciousness, oxygenation (each 0–2, total ≥ 9 for discharge)
- 3.PADSS: vital signs, ambulation, nausea, pain, surgical bleeding (each 0–2, total ≥ 9)
- 4.Manage PONV proactively (Apfel-driven multimodal)
- 5.Pain protocol: multimodal + reassessment + adjustment
This is an exam-prep summary, not a substitute for the full AANA document. Read the source at aana.com for authoritative wording. Education only.