Attempting to define the role of the recovery room

Due to increasing health care costs, hospitals are becoming more involved in interventional health care, while more chronic care is transferred to non hospital institutions. In recent years, therefore, the role of the recovery room has changed to become the central point of periand postoperative care. A broad range of patients is now cared for in the recovery room, from those awaiting discharge home to severely ill patients requiring intensive monitoring/care. This continuum of heterogeneous patients creates a requirement both for ongoing education for the personnel involved and for information that is easily accessible.