Misconceptions about anaesthesia are causing some patients at Bugando Zonal Referral Hospital in Mwanza, Tanzania, to postpone or abandon surgery, the Daily News reports via AllAfrica. Dr Rebecca Shija, who leads the hospital's anaesthesia department, said some people wrongly believe being anaesthetised is close to dying, while others fear spinal anaesthesia will leave them with lasting back pain.
Speaking at a World Anaesthesia Day event, she said some patients only return once their condition has worsened, making recovery harder to predict, and some never come back. The hospital is stepping up public education to explain how anaesthesia works and how trained staff monitor patients before, during and after operations. She added that people with conditions such as diabetes or heart disease need careful assessment first.
Source: AllAfrica (Daily News, Tanzania)