Editor’s Note: As a department chairman, the Editor received a questionnaire about training programs’ practices on reading in the O.R.

To the Editor

You recently responded to my survey regarding reading in the operating room. I appreciate your cooperation. Unknown to me, Dr. Witt was performing virtually the same survey by mail at the time of my own. His results are reported in the Summer 1995 issue of the APSF Newsletter.

Not surprisingly, my findings are very similar to his. We had a 74% response rate. Eighty percent of those responding stated that they never permit reading during administration of surgical anesthesia. Two programs (2.3%) permit reading only during MAC. Fourteen percent of programs permit reading under some circumstances, but only when specifically permitted by the attending anesthesiologist. The survey probably has a bias favoring reporting of policies against reading, since one might surmise that those that do permit reading (and perceive a stigma to be associated with that practice) might be less likely than others to return a survey such as this.

Thomas J. Poulton, M.D Professor and Chair, Department of Anesthesiology The University of Vermont College of Medicine Burlington, VT