Operating room cost management in cardiac surgery: a simulation study
by Antti Peltokorpi, Juha-Matti Lehtonen, Jaakko Kujala, Juhani Kouri
International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management (IJHTM), Vol. 9, No. 1, 2008

Abstract: The high variability in the required operating room (OR) time of open heart surgeries with approximately four and a half hours average overall duration is the main challenge in managing OR utilisation. We evaluate, with a discrete-event simulation model, how three different process changes – a four-day OR week, better accuracy in OR time forecasting and having anaesthesia induction take place outside the OR – impact on cost-efficiency in the OR that is dedicated for open heart surgeries. Doing anaesthesia induction outside the OR has the biggest potential effect on the average OR cost per patient. The paper provides new information about the effects of multi-intervention changes on OR cost per patient in open heart surgery.

Online publication date: Fri, 25-Jan-2008

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