What is an enhanced recovery patient?

The use of enhanced recovery protocols (ERP) in surgery delivers standardized, repeatable, and measurable care that improves clinical outcomes for patients. These pathways address the surgical care episode, from preoperative surgical readiness, during the surgical admission, until after discharge. Standardized pathways have been well-studied in adults, and emerging data in children show promise. However, data reporting has been targeted toward specific study populations and may be a barrier to broader pathway implementation. In this review, we discuss implementation of pediatric ERPs, examine outcome studies and published inclusion and exclusion criteria, and describe strategies for broader implementation of pediatric ERPs.