OBJECTIVES: Surgical operating rooms (ORs) are resource-intensive environments associated with substantial costs. Digital solutions can improve OR coordination, standardize procedural steps, and provide efficiency insights to optimize healthcare resource utilization (HRU) and reduce costs. We assessed the potential economic impact of a digital solution that standardizes OR processes and digitizes surgical workflows.

METHODS: A budget impact model with a 3-year horizon and a German hospital perspective estimated the economic impact of the introduction of a digital solution into the OR for total knee and hip arthroplasty (TKA and THA) procedures. HRU inputs were sourced from real-world data analysis and published studies of surgical workflow standardization. Published costs associated with inpatient stay, instrument tray sterilization, and OR time were combined with costs of the digital solution to calculate the potential cost savings, resulting from a reduction in OR time, postoperative length of stay (LOS), and instrument use following digital solution implementation.

RESULTS: In an OR with a daily 480-min capacity, utilized half the year for TKA and half the year for THA, it was estimated that the OR time saved per day was 144 mins and 156 mins for TKA and THA, respectively, which could enable hospitals to do 1 additional, complete TKA or THA procedure per day, per OR. The digital solution implementation led to a 19.1% and 18.7% reduction in LOS and a 25.0% and 22.2% reduction in the number of instrument trays used for TKA and THA procedures, respectively. Overall, introducing this digital solution could produce cost savings of €5,134,090 over 3 years.

CONCLUSIONS: Introducing a digital solution that standardizes OR workflows for TKA and THA may be associated with cost savings in a hospital setting. Similar cost savings and benefits of standardization could be realized by implementing digital solutions for other surgical procedures.