Cost Savings in Urology Operating Rooms by Editing Surgeon Preference Cards.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Operating room costs contribute significantly to the overall expenditure for inpatient care. We evaluated a simple way to reduce urology operating room costs by limiting the loss from unused disposable items. METHODS: Baseline data were collected on opened and unused disposable items. Surgeons were asked to edit their preference cards and mark optional surgical items that would only be opened if requested. RESULTS: The cost of unused disposable items during the first 4 weeks in 3 operating rooms averaged $410/week. Costs after implementing the intervention declined to an average of $30/week. This yielded $380/week in savings, equating to a 92% reduction in waste, and a potential savings of $19 760 annually in the 2 urology operating rooms alone. CONCLUSION: Since the urology department represents only 10% of the main operating rooms at our institution, if other operating rooms implemented similar cost saving methods the hospital could potentially accrue significant savings.