Theatre scheduling

An operating booking connects a room, start and end times, surgeon and encounter. It can be Requested, Approved, Completed or Cancelled. The request captures the intended operating window; the approval is the clinical lead’s decision that the proposed booking is acceptable. Staff should review both room use and surgeon availability before moving the booking to Approved. A status change without that review would leave the schedule looking settled when the team has not resolved a conflict.

The booking remains tied to the patient encounter, so the clinical team can find the intended procedure window in the context of active care. The ward team may need to coordinate a bed assignment around the booking. A bed placement and an operating room reservation have different times and owners. Keep each record current rather than treating the booking as proof that a bed is available.

• Request. Clinician or Clinical Lead records the proposed room, surgeon and time interval.
• Decision. Clinical Lead reviews the booking and changes its status when the window is accepted.
• Completion. The team records whether the booking was completed or cancelled after the scheduled work.

Agree room names, who may request a booking, and who approves it. Decide how the team checks overlapping windows for a room and for a surgeon before approval. Set a procedure for a change in time or surgeon after approval, including how the ward and clinician learn about it. Review the surgeon’s clinical privileges and the patient’s relevant consent as part of the case preparation. If an external theatre system owns the master schedule, define its connection and the record that staff will trust at handoff.

A clinician identifies a need for surgery during an encounter. The team requests a room window with a named surgeon and planned start and end. Clinical Lead opens Theatre booking review, checks other room windows and the surgeon’s commitments, then approves the request. Ward Coordinator checks the patient’s bed assignment and expected movement. On the procedure day, the team uses Operating room schedule to see approved work by room and surgeon. After the work, the booking can be marked Completed.

For a conflict, keep the booking Requested until the room or time is corrected. For a cancellation, mark the booking Cancelled so it cannot be mistaken for completed work. The case can remain in care even if the booking changes; the encounter is the continuing patient record, while the operating booking describes a specific theatre interval.

• Operating room schedule — Review requested and approved windows with the surgeon and encounter.
• Theatre booking review — Bring proposed windows to the clinical lead for a decision.

Use theatre coordination and care delivery.