MultiCare Yakima Memorial has seven operating suites and provides both minimally invasive and traditional surgical procedures in a number of specialties. We offer inpatient procedures for patients who will remain overnight for their recovery, a post-anesthesia care unit and same-day surgery.
Ambulatory surgery does not require overnight hospitalization and is sometimes called outpatient or same-day surgery. Qualified patients are in reasonably good health, have passed certain screening tests and recovery care can be provided at home. MultiCare Yakima Memorial operates two ambulatory surgery centers:
- The Surgi Center at Memorial is located on the main floor of West Pavilion I and performs 15 to 20 outpatient surgeries daily in the four surgical suites. A tunnel underneath 30th Avenue provides access for medical care teams to move seamlessly between the Surgi Center and main campus operating rooms, as well as providing excellent patient transport capability between the two facilities.
- Memorial Surgery Center at Ridgeview has two operating rooms, a pre-op area, three procedure rooms and two recovery areas and is fully staffed with registered nurses and surgery technicians.
Our goal is to provide you with the best medical care, and open communication is important to achieving this goal. If you have any questions about your care, we encourage you to speak up, ask questions of your care team or voice any concerns you may have while in our care.
Prior to the day of your surgery, it is important for us to communicate with with you to obtain your medical history and give you instructions to prepare you for your surgery and post-hospital care. Your surgical healthcare team will decide how your interview will be conducted, based on your medical criteria and scheduled procedure.
Your appointment will take around 1 hour. During this time a nurse will take your medical history, give you instructions to prepare for the day of surgery and answer your questions/concerns. Additional diagnostic tests will be performed at this time if needed. A family member or friend is welcome to join you for this appointment if you wish.
You will be given a Surgery Patient Handbook that will explain in detail the experiences you might expect as well as itemized lists and questions for you to consider.
You may have physical limitations for a few days after you get home; we ask that you prepare by arranging for a ride and someone available to help you at home for the remainder of the day. If you anticipate additional home care services, what arrangements have you made for additional healthcare services? For example, have you made arrangements for obtaining medications, a walker or wheelchair, having a nurse or caregiver visit you at home, or help with restoring your strength and mobility with physical therapy?
The location and time of your procedure are coordinated by your surgeon's office. Please arrive on time as instructed. Occasionally the location of your surgery may be rescheduled. If this occurs, your surgeon's office will notify you in advance of the change of location.
Upon your arrival, a nurse will complete your admission process to ensure your safety, as well as answer your questions. You will meet with an anesthesiologist prior to your procedure, unless you are scheduled to receive local anesthesia or moderate sedation. At least one family member will need to remain in the waiting area to receive updates and be available to talk to the doctor following your procedure.
Following surgery you will be taken to the recovery room. Nurses will monitor your vital signs, pain and nausea levels and will give you appropriate medicine. Our goal is to make you as comfortable as possible; please tell us how you are feeling. If you are being discharged home after surgery, we will plan to send you home from the recovery room. We will invite a family member to come in and give instructions to both of you. Our goal is to provide you with a healthy environment. If you are spending the night as an inpatient, we will look out for your safety and ensure that you feel clean and comfortable.
More specific instructions will be given to you at the time of your discharge. Please ask questions if you need additional clarification or information. One or two days after your discharge, you will receive a phone call from a nurse to ask you how you are doing and answer any questions you may have.
Anesthesia: True or false?
Anesthesia, or anesthetics, blocks all feeling and can help you get through medical procedures without pain—and, often, without awareness.
While "going under" may be common, how much do you know about anesthesia?
True or false: Ether was the first anesthetic successfully used to put people under for surgery.
True. In 1846, a dentist demonstrated how ether fumes could be used to knock people out during surgery.
True or false: General anesthetics allow you to become unconscious and can only be delivered by gas.
False. General anesthesia does knock you out so that you have no awareness or sensations during surgery. But these drugs can be injected into your bloodstream or inhaled as a gas.
True or false: Getting anesthesia always means becoming unconscious.
False. Some anesthetics can be given with or without sedation, so you can stay awake. A local anesthetic numbs only a small part of your body, such as a tooth or a finger. A regional anesthetic helps numb larger areas and is delivered through a cluster of nerves.
True or false. General anesthetics that are inhaled wear off faster than those that are injected into veins.
False. Inhaled anesthetics take longer to wear off than those given through the veins. Intravenous anesthetics disappear from the bloodstream quickly, allowing patients to go home sooner after surgery.
True or false: Anesthesiologists are medical doctors.
True. Anesthesiologists have a medical degree. They also have to complete a four-year residency in anesthesiology.
Are you scheduled for a medical procedure or surgery? Ask your doctor what kind of anesthesia you can expect to have.