To the Editor

To read or not to read; that is the question! Several years ago, with a plethora of monitors to watch my patients for me during the longer and more predictable cases, I began to bring anesthesia related reading material into the OR. Then one day, I found a paperback left behind by one of my colleagues. Out of boredom, I picked it up and began perusing it and, before you know it, the case was over, the muscle relaxant was still at full blast, and the patient was still on the ventilator with a full load of surgical-depth anesthesia on board. Since that day, the only reading material that I bring ‘into surgery with me is the patient chart.

Edwin Patt, CRNA Jackson, Michigan