Monthly media digest: December 24/January 25

19 December 2024

A digest of college news coverage for December 2024/January 2025

New ‘sip til send’ initiative improves patient comfort

The anaesthesia department at Northeast Health Wangaratta in Victoria featured in an article in the Wangaratta Chronicle (paywalled) on 16 December about the new 'Sip Til Send' initiative.

Dr Jade Radnor, director of anaesthesia and perioperative medicine at NHW, said the initiative aimed to improve the patient experience by helping them stay hydrated and comfortable while waiting for their surgery. 

Patients aged over 16 years of age undergoing surgery can now sip up to a cup of water per hour while waiting for their procedure, and children can also sip on a prescribed smaller amount of water or have lemonade icy
poles while waiting for their procedure.

The change replaces the previous requirement which had prohibited any fluids within two hours of surgery.