Operating room productivity. An evaluation format.

Operating room (OR) directors are frequently faced with the challenge of explaining or justifying OR productivity and the OR staffing budget. This justification may occur annually in conjunction with their budget submission or when consultants are employed to evaluate and improve OR productivity. Whatever the circumstance, a simple step-by-step format that helps physicians and administrators understand the impact of productivity on the nursing budget can be most useful. The authors present a format that was successfully used at a Boston teaching hospital.