AANA Journal Course: Assessing Frailty and Its Implications on Anesthesia Care and Postoperative Outcomes in Surgical Patients

Overview of Course

CRNAs will explore the Phenotype Theory of Frailty and the Accumulated Deficits Theory of Frailty and possible anesthetic implications of incorporating frailty screening into patient care.  Use of a modified frailty index as a tool in a high-quality preoperative evaluation may help practitioners risk-stratify patients.  This can allow for earlier mobilization of care resources before surgery to improve outcomes.

Learner Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the learner will be able to: 

1. Define Frailty.
2. List the 5 traits of the Frailty Phenotype.
3. Discuss the Accumulated Deficts theory of frailty.
4. Discuss modified frailty indexes and their potential impact on anesthesia care.
5. Examin potential anesthetic implications of frailty screening and its impact on intraoperative case management and postoperative outcomes.

Verification of Participation

The participant will have only 2 opportunities to successfully complete the course post-test, which is comprised of 5 random questions pulled from the test pool of questions. The passing score of at least 80% is required for the exam in this course. If the participant fails the post test, he or she will not receive CE credits for this course.

Accreditation Statement

This course has been prior approved by the AANA for 1.0 Class A CE credit; AANA Code Number: 1037564.

Course Expiration Date: 4/17/2022

The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists is accredited with distinction as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.

AANA is an approved provider by the California Board of Registered Nursing, CEP #10862.