A simulation analysis of a patient-centered surgical home to improve outpatient surgical processes of care and outcomes

The process of preparing patients for outpatient surgery is information intensive. However, medical records are often fragmented among different providers and systems. As a result, the preoperative assessment process is frequently prolonged by missing information, potentially leading to surgery delay or cancellation. In this study, we simulate an anesthesiology pre-operative assessment clinic to quantify the impact of patient information deficiency and to assist in the development of a patient-centered surgical home to mitigate this problem through better system-wide coordination.