Unlicensed assistive personnel in the perioperative setting

The present climate in health care, including a tendency toward more managed care and capitation systems, has caused hospital administrators and perioperative managers to reexamine traditional work systems and their associated costs. Some decisions around work redesign may be financially driven or based on the decreased availability of qualified professionals in the job market. The use of an increased number of unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) in hospital settings has become a common redesign strategy to address both issues. In the perioperative setting, some traditional roles are well established for UAP. Today, changes associated with downsizing, cost containment, and increasing technology have opened up new opportunities to explore ways to integrate UAP roles into the perioperative setting.