The effect of an orthopedic trauma room on after-hours surgery at a level one trauma center
Authors
Wixted, John J.Reed, Mark A.
Eskander, Mark S.
Millar, Bryce
Anderson, Richard C.
Bagchi, Kaushik
Kaur, Shubjeet
Franklin, Patricia D
Leclair, Walter J.
UMass Chan Affiliations
Department of AnesthesiologyDepartment of Orthopedics and Physical Rehabilitation
Document Type
Journal ArticlePublication Date
2008-04-12Keywords
*Appointments and SchedulesFemoral Fractures
Fracture Fixation
Humans
Operating Rooms
Organizational Innovation
Orthopedics
Outcome Assessment (Health Care)
Retrospective Studies
Trauma Centers
Workload
Anesthesiology
Orthopedics
Rehabilitation and Therapy
Surgery
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of establishing a dedicated operating room for unscheduled orthopedic cases and to evaluate a group of patients with isolated femur fractures. The frequency of after-hours surgery and the impact of patients who present with acute orthopedic injuries are reviewed. METHODS: A retrospective review of all orthopedic cases from the operating room scheduling system at a level-one trauma center was undertaken from October 2003 to September 2005. Before October 2004, unscheduled cases were placed on a shared add-on list, and no special priority was given to orthopedic cases. Additionally, a subset of adult patients with isolated femoral shaft fractures was identified to evaluate time from admission to surgery, operative time, frequency of transfer of care between surgeons, and total length of hospital stay. RESULTS: The number of orthopedic cases was 1799 in fiscal year 2004 (FY04) and 2046 in FY05, an increase of 14%. Overall, the hospital experienced an increase in level-one trauma activations from 1450 in FY04 to 1580 in FY05 (8.2%), and an increase in the number operative trauma cases from 447 to 494 (9.5%). Cases after 7:00 pm declined from 197 in FY04 to 165 in FY05, a decrease of 16%. Cases between midnight and 7:00 am declined from 63 in FY04 to 35 in FY05, a decrease of 44%. For the subset of femur fracture patients, transfer of care to another operating surgeon occurred 4.5 times more frequently. The median delay between admission and surgery increased from 5.7 hours to 10.9 hours. Median case duration increased from 106 to 127 minutes. CONCLUSIONS: It is possible to dramatically decrease the occurrence of after-hours orthopedic surgery in a level-one trauma center through the use of a dedicated room for unscheduled orthopedic trauma cases. Benefits include less frequent activation of after-hours operating room resources, fewer disruptions to the OR schedule and office hours, and more frequent fracture care by orthopedic traumatologists. The impact of a longer delay between admission and surgical treatment and more frequent transfer of care between surgeons deserves further evaluation.Source
J Orthop Trauma. 2008 Apr;22(4):234-6. Link to article on publisher's siteDOI
10.1097/BOT.0b013e31816c748bPermanent Link to this Item
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/42899Related Resources
Link to Article in PubMedae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1097/BOT.0b013e31816c748b