Mississippi Administrative Code
Title 30 - Professions and Occupations
Part 2635 - Practice of Medicine
Chapter 1 - Surgery/Post-Operative Care
Rule 30-2635-1.4 - Post-Surgical Care

The management of post-surgical care is the responsibility of the operating physician. The operating physician should provide those aspects of post-surgical care which are within the unique competence of the physician. Patients are best served by having post-surgical care conducted by the physician who best knows their condition--the operating physician.

Where the operating physician cannot personally provide post-surgical care, the physician must arrange before surgery for post-surgical care to be performed by another qualified physician who is acceptable to the patient. In this case, the operating physician may delegate discretionary postoperative activities to a qualified licensed physician. Like the operating physician, the physician to whom a patient has been referred for post-surgical care should provide, at a minimum, those aspects of post-surgical care that are not delegable.

Unless otherwise provided by law, delegation of post-surgical activities to an auxiliary is permitted only if the auxiliary is under the supervision of the operating physician or the physician to whom the operating physician has referred a patient for post-surgical care. While an auxiliary may be authorized by law to provide certain aspects of post-surgical care, this does not relieve the operating physician of his or her responsibility to provide post-surgical care or arrange for the delegation of post-surgical care, when appropriate, as required by this rule.

Those aspects of post-surgical care which may be delegated to an auxiliary must be determined on a case-by-case basis, but shall be limited to those procedures which the auxiliary is authorized by law to perform and within the unique competence and training of the auxiliary.

Miss. Code Ann. § 73-43-11 (1972, as amended).