Introduction of the day case total laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH) protocol.

Background: Traditionally total laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH) patients are admitted for 1-2 days post-operatively. Day case TLH has been proven to be feasible and safe in other countries; however, this tertiary Queensland hospital is one of the first Australian institutions to introduce a day case TLH protocol.

Aim: To pilot the implementation of our day case TLH protocol assessing the feasibility, safety and patient satisfaction of same-day discharge.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective audit of the implementation of our day case TLH protocol at a tertiary Queensland hospital was conducted. Primary outcome was length of post-operative hospital stay. Secondary outcomes included perioperative complications and post-operative re-presentation rates. Patient satisfaction was assessed through a patient questionnaire.

Results: Seventy-seven patients were included in the study. There were 94.81% patients who went home on the same day. Their average length of post-operative hospital stay was 7.72 (SD ± 3.36) hours. Of the patients who did achieve same-day discharge, the average length of stay was 7.05 (SD ±1.46) hours. There were no significant differences in perioperative complications or re-presentation rates compared to previously published literature. Patients reported they were extremely satisfied with day case TLH.

Conclusion: The implementation of our day case TLH protocol is feasible, safe and well received by patients in our tertiary Australian hospital. These results can have multimodal effects in healthcare: decrease in hospital costs by reducing length of stay and overnight admissions, improved theatre efficiency and patient flow, while maintaining patient safety and satisfaction.