Determination of the State of Operating Room Efficiency in a Tertiary Hospital in the Philippines

Objective: This study aimed to describe the status of operating room (OR) efficiency of a tertiary hospital in the Philippines according to time-based parameters, identify the direct causes of delays in the OR, and predict the change in number of patients served and OR income if utilization rates improve. Design and Setting: A cross-sectional study employing a retrospective records review of all elective surgical cases from June 2023 to June 2024 was done at a tertiary hospital in Pasig City, Philippines. Main Outcome Measures: The study determined the means of the different OR efficiency parameters, the causes of delays, the relationship between the changes in utilization rate and number of patients served, and the relationship between the changes in the number of patients served and the gross income. Results: The means of the arrival of first case lag time, anesthesia induction lag time and turnover time did not reach target, while the means of the procedure lag time, trans-out lag time and utilization rate were optimal. Among the different causes of delay, those related to the surgeon predominated. The relationship between the change in utilization rate and change in the number of patients served was not significant. Likewise, there was no significant relationship between the change in the number of patients served and the change in gross income. Conclusion: While the means of the arrival of first case lag time, anesthesia induction lag time and turnover time were beyond target mainly due to surgeon-related factors, the utilization rate of the functioning operating rooms was optimal. Hence, the current number of functioning operating rooms may no longer be enough to address the existing backlog of cases. Increasing the number of functioning operating rooms may be considered.