Overrunning of Elective Lists

The frequent occurrence of elective lists going overtime and subsequently preventing the continuance of the emergency list until 19:00 h or 20:00 h on a regular basis is causing us, the anaesthetists, much concern. The unnecessary delay of some of these emergency operations by a few hours may result in unnecessary morbidity and mortality in these patients.

We therefore strongly urge the administration to take measures to ensure that emergency operations can be performed 24 hours a day as is required under Clause 38 of the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Bill 1998.

Our recommendations are

1) Better control of booking of cases into the elective lists to reduce instances of overbooking.

2) Some form of penalty on surgeons

a) who persistently overbook, or,

b) who persistently come late for their cases

3) That the nurses doing the elective lists must continue doing the case until the end of the list and that no emergency staff be used for the elective lists.

4) While all agreed that the emergency list must go on, many mentioned that the staff staying back must be adequately compensated for their dedication and hard work. We suggest that all elective lists going overtime should be charged the full second team charge and that this be used to pay all those staying back their well earned second team charge on top of their overtime pay.

I hope that our proposals will be favourably received and be duly considered at the next OT Subcommittee meeting.

Dato’ Dr. Radha Krishna,
Committee Member,
OT Subcommittee,
SJMC.