Principles of operating room organization.

The importance of the changing health care climate has triggered important changes in the management of high-cost components of acute care facilities. By integrating and better managing various elements of the surgical process, health care institutions are able to rationally trim costs while maintaining high-quality services. The leadership that physicians can provide is crucial to the success of this undertaking (1). The importance of the use of primary data related to patient throughput and related resources should be strongly emphasized, for only when such data are converted to INFORMATION of functional value can participating healthcare personnel be reasonably expected to anticipate and respond to varying clinical demands with ever-limited resources. Despite the claims of specific commercial vendors, no single product will likely be sufficient to significantly change the perioperative process to the degree or for the duration demanded by healthcare reform. The most effective approach to achieving safety, cost-effectiveness, and predictable process in the realm of Surgical Services will occur by appropriate application of the "best of breed" contributions of: (a) medical/patient safety practice/oversight; (b) information technology; (c) contemporary management; and (d) innovative and functional cost-accounting methodology. S "modified activity-based cost accounting method" can serve as the basis for acquiring true direct-cost information related to the perioperative process. The proposed overall management strategy emphasizes process and feedback, rather than specific product, and although imposing initial demands and change on the traditional hospital setting, can advance the strongest competitive position in perioperative services. This comprehensive approach comprises a functional basis for important bench-marking activities among multiple surgical services. An active, comparative process of this type is of paramount importance in emphasizing patient care and safety as the highest priority while changing the process and cost of perioperative care. Additionally, this approach objectively defines the surgical process in terms by which the impact of new treatments, drugs, devices and process changes can be assessed rationally.