Outpatient surgery has progressed over the last century to become the most popular form of management of the operative patient. Patient selection and preparation are particularly important to ensure a successful outcome after outpatient surgery. Knowledge of the problems presented by specific patients (e.g., physical status, postoperative pain, duration of operation, and patient age) is particularly important to improve the changes of success. Preparing patients for outpatient surgery includes preoperative screening, appropriate preoperative lab testing, compliance with revised fasting guidelines, as well as pharmacologic preparation. Attention is to the multitude of factors involved in caring for these patients is essential to decrease morbidity, cancellation rates, and unexpected hospital admission rates and will hopefully improve outcomes.