645. Singapore General Hospital - Pre-operation evaluation - anaesthetic risks

On Sep 28, 2011, I went to the SGH for a pre-op evaluation at 12.30 pm.

My general practitioner diagnosed a cyst behind my right thumb as part of an auto-immune disease. "This is not good news," I said. "Well, you asked me," he said and as I wanted a surgeon, he advised me to see Dr Foo. "Well, Dr Foo will refer you to a dermatologist," he said. But Prof Foo diagnosed it as a synovial cyst, drew an illustration in his case sheet and booked me for the pre-op evaluation and surgery. "You know that GA (general anaesthesia) carries risk," as I opted out of regional anaesthesia.

PRE-OP PROCEDURES ARE:
1. Blood test. A 20G needle with needle holder sucked blood from my left elbow vein into 3 tubes. No news is good news, the anaesthetist told me as not all tests were completed when she saw me at 2 pm.
2. ECG - 10 electrodes attached to me. ECG normal written in the print out.
3. X-ray - chest. Nothing abnormal.
4. Weight and height measured for BMI and Blood Pressure taken by a machine that costs $5,000 and need to be serviced half-yearly. The nurse was most cheerful.