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A novel application of work relative value units to measure short-term surgical trip productivity
Kristina R Lucente1, Francisco J Alvarado2, Ravi J Chokshi3
1Department of Surgery, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, 185 S Orange Ave Department of Surgery, Newark, NJ, 07103, USA.
Introduction:
There is no standard measure of short-term surgical trip (STST) productivity. Work relative value units (wRVUs) are a standardized metric of productivity in the U.S. but have never been applied to STSTs. This pilot study aims to evaluate the utility of wRVUs to quantify STST productivity.
Methods:
Case logs for 6 STSTs (2017-2024) to Kabala Government Hospital, Sierra Leone were reviewed. All procedures were matched to Current Procedural Terminology codes and 2025 Center for Medicare & Medicaid wRVU values.
Results:
Across 6 STSTs, 407 procedures were performed for a total 3047.6 wRVU. wRVU remained stable across years and unchanged pre/post-COVID. When extrapolated to a 48-week work-year mean wRVU per surgeon ranged from 7562.88 to 11,190.24 (U S. benchmark goal 7150).
Conclusion:
This is the first study to utilize wRVU to measure STST productivity and surgeon workload. This framework enables standardized quantification and comparative analysis of STST effort and comparison to U.S. benchmarks.