Streamlining day case procedures: tackling the backlog in post-COVID healthcare

ABSTRACT

Purpose: Hospitals worldwide face huge patient backlogs following the delays caused by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Interventional Radiology (IR) is required to increase productivity to 120% in order to address the backlog and keep up with ongoing service demands. After a period of observation within the department, lack of recovery space was noted as a rate limiting step in patient and theatre turnover. Material(s) and Method(s) Data regarding a selection of day case procedures was obtained from patient tracking software. A total of 214 cases were reviewed. A literature review was also performed to determine the recommended recovery time for each procedure to develop new departmental guidelines. Result(s) The average recovery time for some procedures exceeded the recommendations in the literature. Results are listed as procedure average recovery time;recommended time (hoursmins). The availability of a doctor to review and discharge patients was noted to be the cause of delay in some cases. A nurse-led discharge pathway, in another surgical speciality, has been reported in the literature to improve efficiency while maintaining safety. Conclusion(s) The recovery times for day case procedures far exceeds the reported recommendations, limiting our productivity. At present, a nurse-led discharge pathway does not exist within IR. We plan to explore this avenue as a means to increase patient turnover. Further work in training and creation of standard operating procedures is required before this can be implemented. (Table Presented).