A P R I L 2 0 1 7 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 2 3
The Art of the Flip
Ground rules govern when we let surgeons run 2 rooms.
N
ot long ago,
flip was a
four-letter
word at our surgery
center, but that's all
many of our busier
surgeons wanted to
do: flip cases in a
second operating
room. For them, it
was all about doing
more cases in less
time — not sitting in
the doctor's lounge
waiting for a room to turn over.
We resisted letting our surgeons run 2 rooms for as long as we
could, concerned that the long days and the late hours would take a
toll on our staff. But we knew that if we didn't let our docs flip rooms,
we'd be in danger of losing them to a competitor willing to accommo-
date them. Two years ago, we finally conceded, but not before work-
ing with our docs to set up strict guidelines on when we'd flip rooms.
Rather than rush in, we wanted to ensure that overlapping surgeries
would be efficient for us as well as for our doctors. Our overriding
principle: Be selective. You don't want to flip every doc and every
case. Here are 5 factors that help us decide.
Is case length equal to turnover time? We prioritize flipping for
cases where the turnover time is similar to the case duration. It
1
Business Advisor
Dan Peterson, MHSA, FACHE
• OVERLAPPING SURGERIES Room flipping lets
your surgeons do more cases and, if managed
properly, can decrease your staff overtime rates.
