STANDARD
Department: Quality Improvement Department
Document Identifier: SD/HCO/004/02
The number of noninvasive and minimally invasive procedures performed outside of the operating room has increased significantly over recent times. Sedation, analgesia, or both may be needed for many of these interventional or diagnostic procedures. Procedural Sedation and Analgesia (PSA) is a technique of administering sedatives or dissociative agents with or without analgesics. By relieving anxiety, reducing pain and providing amnesia, PSA induces a state that allows patients to tolerate uncomfortable procedures while maintaining cardiorespiratory function. PSA may also expedite procedures that require the patient not to move i.e. in children and uncooperative adults. PSA comprise a continuum of depressed level of consciousness ranging from minimal sedation to general anesthesia.
The response of individual patients to the administration of PSA is difficult to predict. The types of drugs used, the dosages administered, the preservative effects o...