Comparison of the Rate and Causes of Surgery Cancellations before and after the Implementation of the Health Sector Evolution Plan: a case study in selected public hospitals

Background: Operating room efficiency is one of the main factors in determining hospital costs. Since Health Sector Evolution Plan (HSEP) was implemented with the idea of increasing people's access to hospital services, this study aimed to compare the rate and causes of cancellation of surgical procedures in public hospitals before and after HSEP. Methods: This descriptive-analytic study was carried out in two public hospitals in Zahedan in 2017. A total of 8138 of registered profiles were selected randomly and reviewed. A standard checklist containing 9 questions were used for data gathering. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests and through SPSS software version 21. Results: The number of surgies has increased after HSEP. Befor HSEP, most of the surgeries had been canceled for organizational and managerial reasons (58%) while after HSEP, patient issues were the main cause of cancellation of surgeries (66%). Surgery cancellation related to the surgery team, patient, anesthesia, medical, equipment and organisation had a significant relation with the marital status of patients (P=0.011) and their type of health insurance (P= 0.021). Conclusion: Performing detailed planning for operating rooms, providing necessary training programs for patients, patients' visit by anesthesiologists, as well as quantitative and qualitative improvement of operating room conditions can increase the efficiency of oprtaing rooms and hospitals.