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Abouleish AE, Whitten CW, Hudson ME. Measuring and Comparing Clinical Productivity of Individual Anesthesiologists. Anesthesiology 2023; 139:684-696. [PMID: 37815474 DOI: 10.1097/aln.0000000000004722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/11/2023]
Abstract
Measuring and comparing clinical productivity of individual anesthesiologists is confounded by anesthesiologist-independent factors, including facility-specific factors (case duration, anesthetizing site utilization, type of surgical procedure, and non-operating room locations), staffing ratio, number of calls, and percentage of clinical time providing anesthesia. Further, because anesthesia care is billed with different units than relative value units, comparing work with other types of clinical care is difficult. Finally, anesthesia staffing needs are not based on productivity measurements but primarily the number and hours of operation of anesthetizing sites. The intent of this review is to help anesthesiologists, anesthesiology leaders, and facility leaders understand the limitations of anesthesia unit productivity as a comparative metric of work, how this metric often devalues actual work, and the impact of organizational differences, staffing models and coverage requirements, and effectiveness of surgical case load management on both individual and group productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amr E Abouleish
- Professor and Vice Chair, Faculty Development, Department of Anesthesiology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas
| | - Charles W Whitten
- Professor and Chair, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas
| | - Mark E Hudson
- Professor and Executive Vice Chair, Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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Louër R, Szeto M, Grasfield R, McClain CD, Urman RD, Brovman EY. Trends in pediatric non-operating room anesthesia: Data from the National Anesthesia Clinical Outcomes Registry. Paediatr Anaesth 2023; 33:446-453. [PMID: 36726283 DOI: 10.1111/pan.14644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2022] [Revised: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Modern pediatric anesthetic encounters occur in operating rooms and non-operating room settings. Most anesthesia providers have cared for children in radiology, endoscopy, and other interventional settings at some point in their training and career. There is an absence of published data on the frequency, timing, and demographics of these pediatric anesthesia encounters. AIMS The primary goal of our study is to present data spanning a variety of institutions and practice settings in the United States to define the percentage of non-operating room anesthetic encounters in children. We also set out to characterize the frequency of the most common procedures in the non-operating room setting within the United States. METHODS Using the National Anesthesia Clinical Outcomes Registry data from 2015-2019, we analyzed and reported data on current trends in non-operating room anesthesia including patient demographics, encounter setting, procedure type, and the time at which anesthetic encounters occurred. RESULTS 2 236 788 pediatric anesthetic encounters (patient age <18 y.o.) were analyzed revealing that 22.7% of all pediatric anesthetics occur in non-operating room settings. Patients were more likely to have higher American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status classifications in the non-operating room anesthesia group. Gastroenterological suites are the most common setting reported for pediatric non-operating room anesthesia. CONCLUSIONS Non-operating room anesthesia in the United States is a prominent segment of pediatric anesthetic practice. Pediatric patients encountered in the non-operating room setting have more comorbidities, though further studies are needed to characterize the implication of this finding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Louër
- Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Mindy Szeto
- Department of Dermatology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | | | - Craig D McClain
- Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care, and Pain Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Richard D Urman
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Anesthesiology, The Ohio State University and Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Ethan Y Brovman
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Tufts University Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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Dexter F, Epstein RH, Fahy BG. Association of surgeons' gender with elective surgical lists in the State of Florida is explained by differences in mean operative caseloads. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0283033. [PMID: 36920948 PMCID: PMC10016664 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0283033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A recent publication reported that at three hospitals within one academic health system, female surgeons received less surgical block time than male surgeons, suggesting potential gender-based bias in operating room scheduling. We examined this observation's generalizability. METHODS Our cross-sectional retrospective cohort study of State of Florida administrative data included all 4,176,551 ambulatory procedural encounters and inpatient elective surgical cases performed January 2017 through December 2019 by 8875 surgeons (1830 female) at all 609 non-federal hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers. There were 1,509,190 lists of cases (i.e., combinations of the same surgeon, facility, and date). Logistic regression adjusted for covariables of decile of surgeon's quarterly cases, surgeon's specialty, quarter, and facility. RESULTS Selecting randomly a male and a female surgeons' quarter, for 66% of selections, the male surgeon performed more cases (P < .0001). Without adjustment for quarterly caseloads, lists comprised one case for 44.2% of male and 54.6% of female surgeons (difference 10.4%, P < .0001). A similar result held for lists with one or two cases (difference 9.1%, P < .0001). However, incorporating quarterly operative caseloads, the direction of the observed difference between male and female surgeons was reversed both for case lists with one (-2.1%, P = .03) or one or two cases (-1.8%, P = .05). CONCLUSIONS Our results confirm the aforementioned single university health system results but show that the differences between male and female surgeons in their lists were not due to systematic bias in operating room scheduling (e.g., completing three brief elective cases in a week on three different workdays) but in their total case numbers. The finding that surgeons performing lists comprising a single case were more often female than male provides a previously unrecognized reason why operating room managers should help facilitate the workload of surgeons performing only one case on operative (anesthesia) workdays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franklin Dexter
- Division of Management Consulting, Department of Anesthesia, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, United States of America
| | - Richard H. Epstein
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative Medicine & Pain Management, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, Florida
- * E-mail:
| | - Brenda G. Fahy
- Department of Anesthesiology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
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Dexter F, Epstein RH, Ledolter J, Pearson AC, Maga J, Fahy BG. Benchmarking Surgeons’ Gender and Year of Medical School Graduation Associated With Monthly Operative Workdays for Multispecialty Groups. Cureus 2022; 14:e25054. [PMID: 35719789 PMCID: PMC9200471 DOI: 10.7759/cureus.25054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Female surgeons reportedly receive less surgical block time and fewer procedural referrals than male surgeons. In this study, we compared operative days between female and male surgeons throughout Florida. Our objective was to facilitate benchmarking by multispecialty groups, both the endpoint to use for statistically reliable results and expected differences. Methodology The historical cohort study included all 4,060,070 ambulatory procedural encounters and inpatient elective surgical states performed between January 2017 and December 2019 by 8,472 surgeons at 609 facilities. Surgeons’ gender, year of medical school graduation, and surgical specialty were obtained from their National Provider Identifiers. Results Female surgeons operated an average of 1.0 fewer days per month than matched male surgeons (99% confidence interval 0.8 to 1.2 fewer days, P < 0.0001). The mean differences were 0.8 to 1.4 fewer days per month among each of the five quintiles of years of graduation from medical school (all P ≤ 0.0050). Results were comparable when repeated using the number of monthly cases the surgeons performed. Conclusions An average difference of ≤1.4 days per month is a conservative estimate for the current status quo of the workload difference in Florida. Suppose that a group’s female surgeons average more than two fewer operative days per month than the group’s male surgeons of the same specialty. Such a large average difference would call for investigation of what might reflect systematic bias. While such a difference may reflect good flexibility of the organization, it may show a lack of responsiveness (e.g., fewer referrals of procedural patients to female surgeons or bias when apportioning allocated operating room time).
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Terminology, communication, and information systems in nonoperating room anaesthesia in the COVID-19 era. Curr Opin Anaesthesiol 2020; 33:548-553. [DOI: 10.1097/aco.0000000000000882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Anesthesia outside the operating room is rapidly expanding for adult and pediatric patients. Anesthesia clinicians practicing in this area need a good understanding of the challenges of the NORA environment and the anesthetic risks and perioperative implications of practice so that they can deliver safe care to their patients. RECENT FINDINGS Recent reports from large patient databases have afforded anesthesiologists a greater understanding of the risk of NORA when compared to anesthesia in the operating room. Descriptions of advances in team training with the use of simulation have allowed the development of organized procedural teams. With an emphasis on clear communication, an understanding of individual roles, and a patient-centered focus, these teams can reliably develop emergency response procedures, so that critical moments are not delayed in an environment remote from usual assistance. SUMMARY With appropriate attention to organizational concerns (i.e. team environment, safety protocols) and unrelenting focus on patient safety, anesthesiologists can assist in safely providing the benefit of cutting-edge technical advancements to pediatric patients in these challenging environments.
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Schmutz A, Loeffler T, Schmidt A, Goebel U. LMA Gastro™ airway is feasible during upper gastrointestinal interventional endoscopic procedures in high risk patients: a single-center observational study. BMC Anesthesiol 2020; 20:40. [PMID: 32035477 PMCID: PMC7007643 DOI: 10.1186/s12871-020-0938-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 01/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Nonoperating room anesthesia during gastroenterological procedures is a growing field in anesthetic practice. While the numbers of patients with severe comorbidities are rising constantly, gastrointestinal endoscopic interventions are moving closer to minimally invasive endoscopic surgery. The LMA Gastro™ is a new supraglottic airway device, developed specifically for upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and interventions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of LMA Gastro™ in patients with ASA physical status ≥3 undergoing advanced endoscopic procedures. Methods We analyzed data from 214 patients retrospectively who received anesthesia for gastroenterological interventions. Inclusion criteria were upper gastrointestinal endoscopic interventions, airway management with LMA Gastro™ and ASA status ≥3. The primary outcome measure was successful use of LMA Gastro™ for airway management and endoscopic intervention. Results Thirtyone patients with ASA physical status ≥3, undergoing complex and prolonged upper gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures were included. There were 7 endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatographies, 7 peroral endoscopic myotomies, 5 percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomies and 12 other complex procedures (e.g. endoscopic submucosal dissection, esophageal stent placement etc.). Of these, 27 patients were managed successfully using the LMA Gastro™. Placement of the LMA Gastro™ was reported as easy. Positive pressure ventilation was performed without difficulty. The feasibility of the LMA Gastro™ for endoscopic intervention was rated excellent by the endoscopists. In four patients, placement or ventilation with LMA Gastro™ was not possible. Conclusions We demonstrated the feasibility of the LMA Gastro™ during general anesthesia for advanced endoscopic procedures in high-risk patients. Trial registration German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS00017396) Date of registration: 23rd May 2019, retrospectively registered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Axel Schmutz
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Faculty of Medicine, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, University of Freiburg, Hugstetter Strasse 55, 79106, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.
| | - Thomas Loeffler
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Faculty of Medicine, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, University of Freiburg, Hugstetter Strasse 55, 79106, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Arthur Schmidt
- Department of Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, Medical Center - University of Freiburg University of Freiburg, Hugstetter Strasse 55, Freiburg im Breisgau, 79106, Germany
| | - Ulrich Goebel
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Faculty of Medicine, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, University of Freiburg, Hugstetter Strasse 55, 79106, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
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