Factors Associated With Late Surgical Cancellations in Pediatric Plastic and Oral Surgery.

Background: Surgical cancellations that occur within 1 day of the procedure (ie, late cancellations) disrupt the efficiency of the operating room. The aim of the present study was to identify the factors associated with late cancellations in a tertiary pediatric surgical practice.

Methods: We reviewed the medical records of patients treated by plastic and oral surgery services at our institution from 2010 to 2015.

Physician Courtesy and Patient Satisfaction in a Pediatric Plastic and Oral Surgery Department.

Hospitals in the United States have started collecting information related to the patient experience with the objective of improving overall patient satisfaction. Between 2012 and 2015, the authors collected data from 2,875 patient satisfaction surveys. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of several variables-wait time, physician courtesy, administrative staff courtesy, patients' opportunity to ask questions, and patients' understanding of the answers-on a patient satisfaction score.

Assessing the Cost of Prophylactic Antibiotic Use After Cleft Lip and Lip Adhesion Procedures.

The purpose of this study was to understand the true cost of administering prophylactic antibiotics postoperatively to patients undergoing cleft lip and lip adhesion procedures for which the rate of infection is historically low. Using time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) methodologies, the plastic surgery department of one hospital created a process map with related time intervals and personnel cost rates for administering the antibiotic. The cost for each provider, based on standard salary information, was multiplied by the time required to complete his or her stage of the process, and this outcome was added to the supply costs.

Physician Assistants Improve Efficiency and Decrease Costs in Outpatient Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

Purpose: To determine the effects on time, cost, and complication rates of integrating physician assistants (PAs) into the procedural components of an outpatient oral and maxillofacial surgery practice.

Materials And Methods: This is a prospective cohort study of patients from the Department of Plastic and Oral Surgery at Boston Children's Hospital who underwent removal of 4 impacted third molars with intravenous sedation in our outpatient facility. Patients were separated into the "no PA group" and PA group.

Cost-Benefit Analysis of Three-Dimensional Craniofacial Models for Midfacial Distraction: A Pilot Study.

Objective: Patient-specific three-dimensional (3D) models are increasingly used to virtually plan rare surgical procedures, providing opportunity for preoperative preparation, better understanding of individual anatomy, and implant prefabrication. The purpose of this study was to assess the benefit of 3D models related to patient safety, operative time, and cost.

Design: Retrospective review.

Focusing Quality Improvement Initiatives in Pediatric Plastic Surgery: A Descriptive Study Using the Pediatric National Surgical Quality Improvement Program.

Background: The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program - Pediatrics uses a risk-adjusted, case-mix-adjusted methodology to compare quality of hospital-level surgical performance. This paper aims to focus quality improvement efforts on diagnoses that have large patient volume and high morbidity for pediatric plastic surgery.

Methods: Frequency statistics were generated for a cohort of patients under age 18 who underwent plastic surgery procedures at participating National Surgical Quality Improvement Program - Pediatrics hospitals from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2012.

Increasing value in plagiocephaly care: a time-driven activity-based costing pilot study.

Background: Process management within a health care setting is poorly understood and often leads to an incomplete understanding of the true costs of patient care. Using time-driven activity-based costing methods, we evaluated the high-volume, low-complexity diagnosis of plagiocephaly to increase value within our clinic.

Methods: A total of 59 plagiocephaly patients were evaluated in phase 1 (n = 31) and phase 2 (n = 28) of this study.