Understanding the Surgical Efficiency Challenge

Improving surgical efficiency is essential for optimizing an organization’s bottom line. Even the slightest increase in turnover times can be costly, both financially and in terms of staff satisfaction. Yet predicting and preventing the root causes of inefficiency is extremely complex.  

Surgical Efficiency and the Role of AI

Gaining real-time visibility into every operating room is a manual, time-consuming process today. OR Charge Desk personnel make rounds to visually inspect each room and updates regarding status and remaining case duration are, plainly, educated assumptions. It is very difficult to gain objective, accurate insights into current OR status and how it will impact the downstream surgery scheduling.¹

However, healthcare organizations can leverage video capture and AI to accurately predict anticipated start times, end times, and overtime requirements. Their surgical workflow² begins to optimize, and staff are alerted about key events in advance to minimize delays and maximize utilization.

Unlocking Efficiency Through Smart Investment

Improving utilization isn’t just about saving minutes in the OR—it’s also about making the right surgery scheduling investment.³ By strategically aligning people, processes, and technology, organizations can prevent costly case cancellations, reduce overtime, and ensure staff satisfaction.

Healthcare organizations across the country are leveraging these surgical efficiency solutions⁴ to improve performance. You can learn more about the surgical efficiency challenge in the infographic below and explore the power of AI-driven technology to optimize the OR workflow by downloading our solution overview.

Recommended Reading

1. Surgical Safety Technologies. (2024, November 12). Surgery Scheduling: The Ambient Intelligence Revolution [blog post]. https://www.surgicalsafety.com/blog/surgery-scheduling-the-ambient-intelligence-revolution

2. Surgical Safety Technologies. (2024, November 19). Optimizing the Surgical Workflow with AI-Powered Insights [blog post]. https://www.surgicalsafety.com/blog/optimizing-the-surgical-workflow-with-artificial-intelligence

3. Surgical Safety Technologies. (2025, January 15). Maximizing Surgery Scheduling Investment with Real-time Data [blog post]. https://www.surgicalsafety.com/blog/maximizing-surgery-scheduling

4. Surgical Safety Technologies. (2025, March 19). Beyond Quick Fixes: Real-World Solutions for Improving Surgical Efficiency [blog post]. https://www.surgicalsafety.com/blog/surgical-efficiency-solutions