Improving On-Time Surgical Starts in an Operating Room

Background Operating rooms are expensive to run, and hospitals strive to be efficient. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an initiative to improve starting on time in the operating room in an academic pediatric hospital. Methods We used an 8-step approach to transforming an organization. A mu...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian Journal of Surgery 2010-06, Vol.53 (3), p.167-170
Main Authors: Wright, James G., MD, MHP, Roche, Ann, RN, Khoury, Antoine E., MD
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Appointments and Schedules
Children
Children's hospitals
Efficiency
Efficiency, Organizational
Humans
Management
Operating rooms
Operating Rooms - organization & administration
Organizational Culture
Organizational Innovation
Studies
Surgery
Time Factors
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background Operating rooms are expensive to run, and hospitals strive to be efficient. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an initiative to improve starting on time in the operating room in an academic pediatric hospital. Methods We used an 8-step approach to transforming an organization. A multidisciplinary team defined on-time starts, identified reasons for delays and instituted changes, including improving the same-day admission process, instituting a huddle of operating room staff each morning and providing feedback about on-time starts to staff. Results The most common reasons for delay were surgeon and anesthesiologist unavailability and lack of preparedness of patients. The percentage of operations that began on time, defined as the patient being in the room, increased from about 6% to 60% over a 9-month period. Conclusion A targeted, multifaceted and multidisciplinary approach can increase the percentage of operations that begin on time in a pediatric hospital.
ISSN:0008-428X
1488-2310