AB150. SOH26AB_0122. Optimising pre-operative nutrition to drive improved enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol adherence in elective colorectal surgery
Colorectal Session II

AB150. SOH26AB_0122. Optimising pre-operative nutrition to drive improved enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol adherence in elective colorectal surgery

Deeksha Sammy, Chelsea Rampersad, Oisin O’Donnell, Claire Ryan, Ahmed Zain Ahmed, Omama Musa, Babak Meshkat, Myles Joyce, Mark Regan, Aisling Hogan, Emmeline Nugent

Department of General Surgery, University Hospital Galway, Galway, Ireland

Background: Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols are evidence-based pathways designed to optimise perioperative care, reduce complications, and shorten hospital stay. Despite their benefits, adherence remains inconsistent in clinical practice, limiting their impact on outcomes and resource use. This audit aimed to assess compliance with ERAS guidelines in elective colorectal surgery and evaluate the effect of structured multidisciplinary interventions on adherence and documentation quality.

Methods: A closed-loop retrospective audit was conducted in University Hospital Galway between January 2024 and November 2025. ERAS Society [2018] guidelines were used as the standard. Fifty elective colorectal surgery patients were reviewed per cycle. Data were collected from electronic and paper records and scored using binary input (1= compliant, 0= non-compliant). Following cycle 1 (mean compliance 75%), interventions included ERAS-focused education, introduction of new pre-operative nutritional supplements to be used up to 2 hours pre-operatively, introduction of an elective colorectal admission proforma incorporating ERAS elements, placement of educational posters in clinical areas, and introduction of an ERAS sticker for operative notes. Cycle 2 reassessed compliance post-intervention.

Results: Cycle 1 revealed poor adherence in carbohydrate pre-operative supplementation, early feeding, and mobilisation. Following the intervention, cycle 2 showed significant improvement, with mean compliance rising from 75% to 92.4%. Documentation of post-operative feeding, mobilisation, and venous thromboembolic prophylaxis improved by over 20%.

Conclusions: Embedding ERAS principles into daily workflow through standardised forms and visual prompts substantially improved documentation quality and compliance with ERAS standards. This demonstrates the effectiveness of simple, multidisciplinary quality improvement strategies in enhancing perioperative care pathways.

Keywords: Audit; colorectal surgery; enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS); perioperative care; quality improvement

Acknowledgments

None.

Footnote

Funding: None.

Conflicts of Interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Ethical Statement: The authors are accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the non-commercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

doi: 10.21037/map-26-ab150
Cite this abstract as: Sammy D, Rampersad C, O’Donnell O, Ryan C, Ahmed AZ, Musa O, Meshkat B, Joyce M, Regan M, Hogan A, Nugent E. AB150. SOH26AB_0122. Optimising pre-operative nutrition to drive improved enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol adherence in elective colorectal surgery. Mesentery Peritoneum 2026;10:AB150.

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