January 5, 2007

Room 22 improves care for orthopædic trauma patients

In hospitals and trauma centers across the country, orthopædic surgeons face a major challenge in accommodating urgent and emergency fracture surgeries into already packed schedules. Stemming from limited operating room availability, this problem can lead to frustration for both physicians and patients as surgeries are rescheduled to accommodate new cases that come in throughout the day. MGH Orthopædic Surgery, however, developed an innovative solution to this issue by dedicating an operating room specifically to trauma surgeries. This operating room is known as "Room 22."

Plans for Room 22 were first developed in 1999, when the MGH made a commitment to creating a world-class orthopædic trauma program. Prior to its implementation, fracture surgeries often were performed late in the day after elective surgeries were completed. This proved challenging for physicians, as they were sometimes forced to operate at off-peak hours and with less experienced support staff. If a fracture required emergency surgery, an elective case would have to be bumped, inconveniencing patients and other staff. With the advent of the dedicated trauma operating room, however, patients requiring fracture surgery are attended to immediately, and elective surgeries can be performed as scheduled.

Mark Vrahas, MD, chief of Partners Orthopædic Trauma Services; Harry Rubash, MD, chief of MGH Orthopædic Surgery; and R. Malcolm Smith, MD, chief of the MGH Orthopædic Trauma Service; all played integral roles in bringing Room 22
to fruition. "Congratulations to Drs. Vrahas and Smith for their innovations in developing this solution to a very difficult problem," says Rubash. "Our trauma patients receive world-class care in a timely and efficient fashion as a result of this dedicated OR program. This could not have existed without the help of MGH Administration, Anesthesia, Nursing and Orthopædics."

Adds Vrahas, "Thanks to everyone's support, this innovative approach has been a win-win situation all around. It has improved patient care and at the same time made life easier for the surgeons and OR staff."

Several other medical institutions — including the Carolinas Medical Center and the UMASS Memorial Medical Center — have since followed the MGH model in developing their own dedicated orthopædic trauma operating rooms. The MGH orthopædic surgery team also recently published an article on the benefits of maintaining a dedicated trauma space in The Journal of Trauma, Injury, Infection and Critical Care.