ISQua 2024 Abstract Submission
Patient Safety & Quality Improvement
ISQUA2024-ABS-2372
Reducing the Interval Time Between Surgeries for Urological Patients
Fan-Yu Hsiao* 1, Chia-Wei Yu2, Ting-Ting Wang1, Wen-Ying Cheng1, Hsiu-Ju Lo1
1operating room, En Chu Kong Hospital, 2operating room, En Chu Kong Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan
Preferred presentation method: Poster Display
Have you presented this abstract at an ISQua Conference before?: No
I confirm that the submission has been approved by all authors: Yes
Introduction: The interval time for changing operating room setups is one of the indicators measuring operating room
efficiency. Effective time management can increase the capacity of operating rooms and reduce both labor and time
costs. This study aims to shorten the interval time for urology patients in the operating room, improve the utilization of
surgical team manpower, and minimize time wastage to maximize the overall productivity of operating rooms.
Methods: The measures implemented in this study are as follows: (1) Optimizing the turnover process of urological
surgeries, including the establishment of principles and sequences for instrument preparation, effective communication
and handover as well as physical cleaning procedures; (2) Introducing a pre-established surgical order for outpatient
cases to initiate preoperative preparations at an earlier stage; (3) Establishing a specialized and supportive surgical team,
comprising of physicians, anesthesia nurses, surgical nurses, surgical assistants, and cleaning staff, with defined roles
and responsibilities; (4) Providing education and training on surgical notification times, the sequence and criteria for
surgical turnover, and protocols for handling unexpected events; (5) Creating time delineated visual aids reinforcing time
management; (6) Adding additional cleaning support staff during peak hours in the operating rooms; (7) Implementing a
time registration system to monitor delays and reasons to manage surgical turnover times.
Results: The implementation of these strategies resulted in the following significant outcomes: (1) From January to
September 2023, there were a total of 370 urology surgical turnovers with an average turnover time decreasing from 14.7
minutes to 9 minutes. The effect is still maintained until December; (2) The delays caused by physical cleaning of the
operating rooms decreased from 20.1% to 4.2%; (3) Overtime hours of operating room personnel decreased from 27
hours to 17 hours per month; (4) A total of 46 team members participated in training, of which 93% expressed satisfaction
and benefited most from problem-solving activities for unexpected events.
Conclusion: Through the collaboration of the surgical team, optimization of the surgical turnover process, and personnel
education and training, it is possible to effectively reduce the turnover rate and increase efficiency of the operating room.
For patients, this translates to reduced wait times; for the hospital, it means lowering manpower costs; and for nursing
staff, it results in a reduction of overtime hours. Additionally, these improvements are not limited to the urology
department but can be applied to other departments within the operating rooms, further enhancing surgical quality,
healthcare, and increasing the overall efficiency of operating room services.
Disclosure of Interest: None Declared
Keywords: Interval Time, operation room, surgical intervals