A predetermined first patient on the trauma list can improve theatre start times

IntroductionThe concept of the golden patient (GP) was introduced to our busy teaching hospital, in April 2009, with the aim of improving our trauma theatre start times. The GP is a pre-selected first patient on the following day trauma list who is medically fit with a clear surgical plan.MethodsThis prospective study compared the trauma theatre start times over a two month period following the introduction of the GP, with a similar two month period prior to the introduction of the GP. A two-sided t-test was used to evaluate statistical significance between groups.ResultsOf the 55 planned trauma lists analysed, 42 had a designated GP on it (76%), 37 of which remained first on the actual trauma list (88%). The mean operation start time for the pre-GP lists was 10:03 compared to 09:33 for the actual GP lists (P < 0.001). The reception, anaesthetic and operation start times for pre-GP lists compared with lists where no GP was selected were not statistically significant suggesting that the GP was the cause of the significance.ConclusionThe introduction of the GP to our trauma lists has made a significant improvement to theatre start times and consequently surgical theatre efficiency.