Operating Room Inefficiencies and Their Impact on Case Duration

A study using a surgical app to track operating room (OR) inefficiencies found that incidents causing delays averaged 2.7 per procedure, contributing to an overall case duration of 109 minutes. On average, each incident caused a 2.8-minute delay, with some causing longer delays. The study, which observed 151 general surgery procedures, identified procedural steps most susceptible to incidents. Understanding these inefficiencies can guide targeted interventions to improve OR efficiency and reduce operative time.