Providing surgical staff with case cost receipts, which detail expenditures for procedures, can lead to sustainable cost-saving procedures.

“Health care costs in the U.S. continue to escalate at a rate outpacing general inflation, and operating room (OR) costs comprise nearly 25% of all inpatient health care costs,” said Bradley S. Kushner, MD, of the Department of Surgery at Washington University in St. Louis, citing data from a Peterson-KFF analysis of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and National Health Expenditure data.

“By directly controlling OR supplies utilized, surgeons play a key role in reducing health care expenditure,” Dr. Kushner added.

Starting in the spring of 2020, Washington University in St. Louis began providing surgical faculty with case supply receipts, delivered immediately through the electronic health record following each surgical case. The receipts detailed total procedure costs, itemized breakdowns of supplies used during the surgery, and provided a comparison of overall costs with institutional peers.

Dr. Kushner and his colleagues conducted a survey to evaluate perceptions of the cost receipts and their effectiveness in enacting individual practice and/or cultural change.

A total of 119 individuals completed the survey. Response to the case receipts was very strong, with 62% very/extremely interested in the practice, and 74.5% commenting that they reviewed the receipts daily. In addition, 87% noted a feeling of responsibility for lowering costs. Over half reported that viewing the receipts resulted in altering their surgical technique due to cost feedback, 60% changed surgical supplies used, and 80% of the general surgery faculty reported now being aware of how to lower OR costs.

“Next steps include evaluating whether this perceived cultural change has led to actual decreases in OR costs,” Dr. Kushner said.