Here are eight clinical findings from an AAAHC Institute for Quality Improvement 2011 study on knee arthroscopy. Forty organizations that perform a combined total of more than 11,000 procedures annually participated in the study.
Procedure times
1. Median pre-procedure time was 90 minutes (range 60-164). Organizations with the shortest times attributed their results to preparing prior to the day of surgery and sufficient staffing.
2. Average procedure times ranged from 7-55 minutes (median 26).
3. Median discharge time was 68 minutes (range 40-132). Organizations with the shortest times attributed their results to educating patients pre-operatively and short-acting anesthesia combined with local anesthetics.
Patient outcomes
4. 91 percent said they were able to schedule their procedures as soon as they wanted.
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5. 99 percent said they experienced little or no discomfort during the procedure and 98 percent said they were comfortable post-discharge.
6. 100 percent said they had adequate understanding of the procedure and had received written discharge instructions.
7. 97 percent had begun walking (with or without crutches).
8. 98 percent would recommend the procedure to a friend or relative.
To learn more about these studies and other ambulatory healthcare reports from the AAAHC Institute, visit www.aaahciqi.org.
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