Emerging Technology and the Future of Perioperative Care: Perspectives and Recommendations From the 2023 Stoelting Conference of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.

Abstract

Anesthesiology has a longstanding commitment to patient safety, characterized by innovative research, quality improvement, multidisciplinary collaboration, and engineering-based approaches to care systems. The field has been instrumental in advancing technological developments across the perioperative continuum, contributing to the ongoing mission of harm reduction and risk mitigation. However, modern challenges in health care, including increasingly complex patient conditions, workforce shortages, burnout, and the overwhelming volume of health data generated, have created a more urgent and multifaceted landscape for patient safety efforts. Furthermore, with the expanding perioperative continuum, from prehabilitation to postoperative acute care at home, anesthesiology teams must now adapt to a broader role in patient care. To continue enhancing patient safety, anesthesiology must integrate emerging technologies into clinical workflows, scaling their presence and effectiveness. The 2023 Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation Stoelting Conference highlighted the necessity for anesthesiology to embrace these innovations while recognizing the challenges they pose. Three key technological domains were emphasized: wearables and the Internet of Medical Things; big data and artificial intelligence; and clinical decision support systems coupled with advanced alarm systems. These technologies offer opportunities to improve patient safety but require careful integration into clinical practice. This report explores the potential of these technologies to reshape anesthesiology and perioperative care while focusing on their application across 4 key phases: the preanesthesia phase at home; the intraoperative phase within health systems; postanesthesia recovery; and recovery at home. By leveraging these technologies, anesthesiology can enhance decision-making, improve outcomes, and continue advancing the mission of patient safety in a rapidly evolving health care landscape.