Implementing a Nurse-Driven Aromatherapy Protocol to Decrease the Effect of Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting

Implementing a Nurse-Driven Aromatherapy Protocol to Decrease the Effect of Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting

This is a quality improvement project that aims to assess the effect of nurse-driven administration of essential oil aromatherapy on postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) in patients while in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) after general anesthesia.

In this three-month quality improvement project, nurse-driven aromatherapy will be offered to all patients in the main PACU setting at the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) Houston Healthcare Southeast Hospital after they have undergone surgical procedures with general anesthesia, with the exception of patients who report allergies or sensitivity to ginger or lavender essential oils (EO) and patients who wish to be excluded from the project.

Inclusion Criteria:

• PACU patients who are in the main PACU setting at HCA Houston Healthcare Southeast Hospital after having undergone general anesthesia for a surgical procedure

Exclusion Criteria:

• patients with allergies or sensitivity to ginger or lavender essential oils
• patients who wish to be excluded from the project