Postoperative Care (eLearning)

You can take this module as part of the PGCert in Surgery, designed for FY1-2 & CT1-2.

You can also take this module as a standalone online course at any stage of your career.

To be eligible, candidates need to have  access to an Educational / Clinical Supervisor.

Topics you will cover include:

• the management of common postoperative complications;
• fluid balance in the postoperative period;
• postoperative nutrition;
• analgesia;
• the principles of enhanced recovery;
• haemorrhage and blood transfusion.

After completing this Postoperative Care module, you will be able to:

• Assess and manage common postoperative complications.
• Describe the principles of postoperative fluid balance.
• Identify the principles of postoperative nutritional support and its complications.
• Competently prescribe postoperative analgesia.
• Describe the pathophysiology of the surgical stress response and its adverse effects in the postoperative period.
• Describe enhanced recovery pathways and their role in mitigating the surgical stress response.
• Explain the implications of haemorrhage and the principles of blood transfusion.

This is an interactive online module within the innovative RCS England e-learning platform. This format means you can study using any device, whenever and wherever it suits you.

This module requires the completion of 4 work place based assessments (WBAs). It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the capacity to complete the WBAs and that they are within your scope of practice in order to complete the module. WBAs cannot be missed or replaced with alternative activities. You will need to have an appropriate supervisor to complete these.

The WBAs include:

Either a Case Based Discussion (CBD) or a Clinical Evaluation Exercise (CEX)

• In your surgical practice, you will encounter numerous patients with postoperative AKI. Select one of these patients: consider their clinical condition, the cause of their AKI and it's management. 

Either a Case Based Discussion or a Clinical Evaluation Exercise (CEX) 

• Consider a postoperative patient in your care who developed CNS dysfunction following their operation. What was the underlying cause of their symptoms? How were they investigated and managed?

Case Based Discussion (CBD)

• Select a patient in your care who is receiving nutritional support. Consider their clinical condition, cause of malnutrition and benefits and risks associated with the type of nutritional support they are receiving. 

Assessment of Audit (AOA)

• Once you are familiar with the principles of ERAS, examine the patient pathway on your current (or previous) rotation. Do you think the principles of ERAS are being adhered to?

For more information on WBAs, please consult the ISCP website. If you do not have an Assigned Educational Supervisor (AES) you can use the ISCP guidance to find a suitable alternative, for example within the Case Based Discussion guidance.

 You will have access to this module for 6 months, which you can also extend.