The ERAS approach can help nurses promote evidence-based perioperative care. So, why has it not been universally implemented?

For patients having surgery, fasting from midnight and bed rest for several days afterwards have long been among the traditional standards for perioperative care. Now an evidence-based approach is turning much of this accepted wisdom on its head. The concept of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) dates back to the mid-1990s. The principles have since spread across the world and been customised for various operations, after being pioneered for colorectal surgery by Danish clinical professor Henrik Kehlet.