[Evaluation of hospital bed supply for surgical procedures having long waiting lists in the Lazio region, through analysis of discharge abstract data].

Certain surgical procedures have been identified in Italy as having critically long waiting times. We reviewed current hospital discharge abstract data to describe the supply for two of these surgical procedures in the Lazio region: hip replacement surgery and cataract extraction. Our results show that the regional hospital bed supply for hip replacement surgery is insufficient while for cataract extraction it is progressively increasing. The supply for hospital surgical procedures can be monitored through easily available data and can be used to support decision making in health care management.