Time in the operating room has a significant effect on revenue and costs for hospitals. In fact, Rajeev Saxena, co-lead author of a recent study examining this issue, states, “OR scheduling is a $5 billion problem.”
The study from the University of Washington that Saxena and his colleagues published looked at data collected over four years from 92 surgeons. It found, among other things, that surgeons “greatly underestimate the time of procedures.” Not only that, but timing varied most by surgeon — not by the type of procedure, the patient’s context, or the amount of surgical staff.
Why is this important? As Science Daily reports in their article featuring the study, surgery can cost up to $80 a minute. When hospitals aren’t able to account for this time — by either overbooking or underbooking their ORs — the resulting expenses run in the millions of dollars.
So how do hospitals solve this problem and maximize OR efficiency without sacrificing safety in surgery and excellent patient care? Some have turned to outsourcing their OR operations to fine-tune their efficiency and cut down on wasteful expenses.
Why Health Systems Are Outsourcing Their ORs to SpecialtyCare
SpecialtyCare is one of the allied health organizations that health systems are choosing for this purpose. As an industry leader in perfusion and IONM services, we specialize in placing exceptional clinicians in operating rooms around the country. Here are a few reasons why health systems are outsourcing their ORs to SpecialtyCare:
- It’s cost-effective. We train our surgical staff extensively — and because we’re able to focus on their training, we can provide clinicians who run their ORs in a cost-effective way, not exhausting or underutilizing critical resources.
- It saves time. Health systems have a lot to focus on when it comes to improving outcomes, reducing costs, and maintaining standards of patient care. Our specialized services save hospitals valuable time when we focus on the OR for them, providing highly talented surgical staff and optimized operations.
- It’s safe and research-backed. Our organization is dedicated to making surgery safer. One of the ways we do this is by collecting data from all the surgeries our team is involved in — over 100,000 across the nation every year — and providing insights on the most effective and innovative treatments. Hospitals that employ our clinicians and have access to our database benefit from the wealth of knowledge we’ve acquired.
Partner with Us for Safer and More Efficient ORs
If you’re a surgeon, perfusionist, or neurophysiologist looking to make a difference for the cause of safer surgeries and more efficient ORs, please get in touch with us today. We would love to tell you more about how we’re working to improve patient care through our specialized services. And if you’re a hospital executive or administrator seeking a partner for outsourced OR operations, look no further. Our team can tell you how to get started with us and begin reclaiming the misappropriated hours from inefficient ORs. Contact us today to learn more!
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