Details
Dates
Thu 7/25/24
-
Thu 1/16/25
Acct/Dept
Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
Service
Medical Center IT / Request MC IT Service
Type
IT Medical Center / MC IT Strategic Project
Classification
Strategic Initiative
Requirements
Ensure buy-in and support from key stakeholders including surgeons, OR managers, administrative staff, and hospital leadership. - secured
Created
Mon 7/29/24 9:33 AM
Modified
Tue 11/5/24 10:50 AM
Description
The Advancing OR Block Utilization project is a strategic initiative aimed at maximizing the efficiency and effectiveness of operating room (OR) scheduling. By focusing on better resource allocation, improved scheduling practices, and enhanced communication protocols, this project aims to achieve several key objectives:
Improved Schedule Efficiency: By optimizing OR block utilization, we aim to reduce turnovers between surgeries, allowing for more surgeries to be scheduled.
Increased Surgical Throughput: Through better management of OR resources and scheduling, we seek to increase the number of surgeries performed, meeting patient demand more effectively.
Enhanced Resource Allocation: By aligning surgical schedules with available resources (including staff, equipment, and facilities), we aim to minimize resource wastage and improve overall operational efficiency.
Revenue Growth: Maximizing OR utilization directly correlates with increased revenue opportunities. By efficiently filling OR blocks and reducing idle time, we anticipate a significant boost in revenue generation.
Improved Communication and Coordination: Implementing clearer communication channels and introducing new tools and features like "OR Marketplace" will facilitate better coordination among surgical teams, support staff, and administrative personnel, ensuring smoother operations and patient flow.
Data-Driven Decision Making: Utilizing data analytics and performance metrics, we will continuously monitor and evaluate OR utilization rates, identifying areas for further improvement and adaptation.
Through these initiatives, the project aims to enhance operational efficiency and revenue streams, improve patient care delivery and overall organizational performance.
In addition to the above, it is crucial to note that there are essentials parts of this project. Foremost among these is the need to accelerate the financial clearance process. Efficient financial clearance ensures that all necessary financial approvals and arrangements are in place before the day of surgery, thus minimizing delays and optimizing OR utilization effectively.
Another essential part is the partitioning of the OR schedule. Currently, we allocate times by specialty, and moving forward, we will allocate by Specialty, Surgeons, and Groups.
Intangible Benefits
This project increases revenue by filling missing slots in operating rooms and maximizing utilization.
It improves patient satisfaction by enabling earlier surgery scheduling and automates the scheduling process, with Epic handling tasks that were previously manual duties of the board runner.