Business Process Re-engineering for Medical Supply Management: A Case Study of Operating Room

Abstract

Supply chain in Operating Room (OR) is different from other healthcare unit supply chain as it is specific, precise, and necessary to each surgical procedure and operations. With advancement in surgical technology, the increasing number of surgical cases, the variety of medical supplies utilized, and the time constraint have impacted the staff working hours and waiting time for the next patients. Enhancing efficiency of medical supplies management in the operating room can reduce delay time and bring potential benefits to hospital management. The purpose of this study is to apply business process re-engineering (BPR) in healthcare organization to study and redesign a new business process for medical supply management system in operating room. The case study is conducted in a private hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. The workflow process of medical supply management was analyzed to identify the area of improvement and redesign the process. Lastly, the total time for the new process can be reduced from 57.56 to 12.36 min or it is accounted for 78.53% of time reduction.