Preanestes@s Phase 2. Evaluation of the Utility of a Web Based Application for Preoperative Care: Comparison of the Rate of Suboptimal Web-Based Assessments Versus the Outpatient Visit

Preanestes@s is a web based application conceived to lead patients through the preoperative period. The application includes a patient interface which offers general and individualized information on the perioperative process, with the possibility of generating a dynamic interaction between patients and medical staff. Patient interface incorporates a web based preoperative questionnaire that once fully completed automatically indicates which preoperative tests are necessary and addresses patients to a virtual (non face to face) consultation or to traditional outpatient assessment. Both virtual and outpatient assessment are performed by an anesthesiologist. The web based questionnaire automatically assigns patients an ASA (from the American Society of Anesthesia Physical Status Classification) grade; this being a determining variable, although not the only one, when directing patients to the virtual or face-to-face consultation.The questionnaire therefore serves both for collection of clinical information and as a patient classification tool as well.

Virtual assessment is performed by evaluating both the filled web based questionnaire together with patient´s electronic records. Face to face assessment is performed in the traditional way by means of a clinical interview together with the consultation of patient's previous electronic records.

The virtual assessment is reserved for participants without significant comorbidity, which would correspond to patients classified as grade ASA 1-2; this means without diseases or with diseases that do not significantly compromise the integrity of the patient: well-controlled hypertension, active smoking without major lung disease, non-morbid obesity, etc. Patients with significant comorbidity (grade ASA ≥ 3), are referred to a face-to-face consultation.

This study has been approved by the local Ethics Committee -Comité de Ética e Investigación de Huelva-and signed by its Secretary María Dolores Santos Rubio, date 18.12.2019, and corresponds to the Phase 2 of the study "Evaluation of the utility and quality of the clinical information obtained through Preanestes@s, a web based application for preoperative assessment. Comparison of the virtual preanesthetic visit and the outpatient face-to-face visit.". Phase 2 is independent of Phase 1, entitled "Evaluation of the Quality of Preoperative Information Obtained Through Preanestes@s, a Web Based Application: Paired Comparison of a Web Based Questionnaire, a Virtual Non Face to Face Assessment and Outpatient Visit", registered in Clinical Trials with number of reference NCT04259268. Primary completion of Phase 1 have been concluded with date February 19, 2021, and preliminary analysis of data is currently being conducted by investigators.

In this study, the objective of the investigators is to assess whether the use of a web based application for the preoperative assessment allows an adequate completion of the preoperative process when compared to traditional face to face outpatient interview. The quality of the information recorded by this web based application has been previously tested by the investigators showing promising results in terms of security and accuracy.