The effect of disruption due to COVID-19 on operating room utilization: Experience from a secondary care hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND: The disruption caused due to corona virus disease-2019 (Covid-19) has affected the overall health care delivery worldwide. The elective services were foremost to face the restrictions and closure, subsequently they were resumed only after adoption on newer protocols. AIMS: We aimed to estimate the effect of COVID-19 restrictions on operative room utilization. METHODOLOGY: This is a retrospective descriptive study. The surgical volume indicators were calculated and a comparison was made between pre-COVID-19 (April–June 2019) and COVID-19 phase (April–June, 2020). Pre-operative covid assessment through the RT-PCR test among the cases waiting for elective surgeries. RESULTS: Overall surgical volume decreased by 53%, which included 87% decrease in elective procedures and 8% decrease in emergency procedures. The overall OR utilization reduced by 63%. Highest reduction in the surgical volume was noted in bariatric surgery (no surgeries conducted in the COVID-19 phase), ophthalmology (99% reduction), and Ear, Nose and Throat surgery (ENT) surgery (92% reduction). Six patients tested positive for pre-operative RT–PCR from the sample of 261 cases posted for elective surgery during resumption phase of elective services, thereby giving the positivity rate of about 2.2%. CONCLUSION: We found a high level of reduction in the operating room utilization in a secondary care public sector hospital. The pre-operative assessment has enabled to find out the COVID-19 cases and hence preventing the unwanted spread of infection during the surgical procedures.