Improving Theatre Productivity by Digitising Surgical Equipment Repairs

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Surgical Technology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Surgical equipment issues cause significant patient and National Health Service (NHS) burdens due to cancelled surgeries.
• Few strategies exist to mitigate these avoidable cancellations, especially those integrating digital solutions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the efficiency improvements from digitizing the surgical equipment repair pathway.
• To reduce avoidable surgical cancellations through a pilot study at Broomfield Hospital.

Main Methods:

• Digitized two repair pathways: ad-hoc repairs and maintenance equipment services (MES).
• Collected pre- and post-digitization data on process steps, staff time, turnaround time, cancellations, maintenance compliance, and staff satisfaction.
• Utilized cognitive task analyses, time-motion studies, hospital datasets, and staff surveys for data collection.

Main Results:

• Digitizing ad-hoc repairs saved 74 minutes per repair, yielding £21,721.48 annually.
• Digitizing MES repairs saved 56 minutes per repair, yielding £3,469.44 annually.
• Turnaround time decreased by 14-29 days, cancellations fell by 44%, maintenance compliance reached 100%, and staff satisfaction rose to 96%.

Conclusions:

• Digitization of equipment repair pathways offers substantial efficiency gains and cost savings.
• This digital approach effectively reduces avoidable surgical cancellations.
• The pilot study provides a model for improving hospital equipment management and patient care.