Objective:Pre-anaesthetic assessment is considered an essential part of anaesthetic practice, however there is a lack of studies addressing the duration of the pre-anaesthetic assessment. The aim of the study was to establish the duration of the pre-anaesthetic assessment at two large tertiary care hospitals in the Czech Republic. Design: Prospective non-interventional observantional study. Setting: University Hospital Hradec Kralove, University Hospital Motol Prague. Material and Methods: The prospective study was conducted during a three-month period in 2004. The following data were recorded in every single patient undergoing the pre-anaesthetic assessment: length of pre-anaesthetic assessment in minutes, patient’s age in years, patient’s ASA status, and qualification grade of the anaesthetist. The primary endpoint of the study was to measure the duration of the pre-anaesthetic assessment. Results: During the study period, the data from 3001 pre-anaesthetic visits were collected (University Hospital Hradec Kralove – 1851, University Hospital Motol Prague – 1150). The mean time (SD) for all pre-anaesthetic assessment was 14.9 (6.2), 95% CI for mean = 14.7–15.2; median 15 minutes. The duration of pre-anaesthetic assessment increased with ASA status (r = 0.493, CI 95% 0.464–0.521, P < 0.0001). The mean duration of pre-anaesthetic assessment was different between groups of anaesthetists in both hospitals, the longest mean pre-anaesthetic assessment time was observed in the group of physicians with the highest qualification grade. Conclusions:The mean duration of the pre-anaesthetic assessment was 15 minutes and there was correlation between ASA status and length of the pre-anaesthetic assessment time. Anaesthetists with the highest qualification grade had the longest pre-anaesthetic assessment time, however the clinical importance of this difference seems to be minimal.

        Key words: pre-anaesthetic assessment – anaesthetic consultation time