Factors affecting pre‐operative assessment times

Hawes et al. found that age, ASA physical status, nurse practitioner and surgical specialty all influenced the time spent in pre-operative assessment 1, but stated incorrectly in their introduction that there are no published studies that have investigated factors which affect pre-operative assessment times. In 1998, Gibby et al. reported that ASA physical status predicts time for pre-anesthetic evaluation 2. In 1999, I described how the design of appointment systems for pre-anesthesia evaluation clinics minimised patient waiting times based on computer simulation and patient survey studies 3, in 2012, how the number of medications was a more accurate predictor of appointment duration than any other variable including ASA physical status 4, and in 2013, how reducing mean evaluation time should focus on appropriate scheduling and staffing levels, rather than individual practitioner evaluation speeds 5. I discuss these further in a lecture which is freely available online (http://www.FranklinDexter.net/education.htm).