STTR Phase I: Digital management of operating room workflow to promote efficiency, cost savings, and quality

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I project is to optimize the workflow, coordination and communication of surgical operating room (OR) teams. Recent technological advances have allowed development of a simple solution to radically improve the workflow and performance of OR team members. Historically, OR teams have relied on archaic paper instrument lists and previous experience to orchestrate complex tasks, resulting in lost time and waste due to non-coordination. In particular, the two biggest frustrations for surgeons and OR teams is not having the precise tools and equipment needed for a surgery and difficulty staying on the same page as a surgery progresses. Research shows workflow distractions and disruptions related to these instruments, equipment, and awareness issues are a major cause for delays/errors in the OR, which lead to problems with costs, efficiency, and most importantly quality of surgical care. By introducing a digital real-time workflow management tool to the OR environment, this technology will set a new benchmark for OR team performance. The proposed project aims to test and prove the value of a digital application software that displays the tools, tasks and preferences specific to the operating surgeon along each step of a given procedure. This software solves decades old frustrations of OR teams by guiding them through a surgery in real time, raising awareness as to the technical progression of the case, and effectively decreasing the preventable disruptions, distractions and delays related to the failure of having the correct instruments/equipment available. Via a prospective multi-institutional study, the technology will be tested during live surgical procedures to generate data proving its value based on cost savings and efficiency. Ultimately, the use of this technology will lead to improved surgical quality. Using an iterative design and development approach, the testing of this technology will directly feed back into the development of additional fundamental features and new generations of this product, such that OR team satisfaction is maximized and it fits as seamlessly as possible into existing workflow. The time has come to harness modern technology to optimize the performance of our surgical teams and thus improve delivery of care in the OR.