When it comes to surgery, patients and their families often focus on choosing the right surgeon or hospital. But what about the timing of the procedure? Could the day of the week a surgery is performed impact its outcome? Some research suggests it might.
In this blog, we’ll explore studies linking surgical outcomes to specific days of the week, the potential reasons behind this, and how attorneys can use data to strengthen cases involving surgical complications.
Are Fridays and Weekends a Dangerous Time for Surgery?
While most people don’t give much thought to the day their surgery is scheduled, some studies suggest that surgeries performed on Fridays and weekends may carry higher risks of complications.
One study found that patients were 44% more likely to die after a surgery performed on a Friday compared to a Monday. The risk nearly doubled for surgeries performed on weekends, with patients 82% more likely to die compared to those who had procedures on Mondays.
While further research is needed to fully understand the risks, as not all studies reached statistical significance, attorneys representing clients impacted by surgical errors should closely examine how factors like surgeon experience and fatigue may have contributed to the outcome.
Factors that May Impact Surgical Outcomes
Researchers have identified potential factors that may contribute to higher complications for surgeries scheduled later in the week:
Understaffing
Hospitals sometimes operate with reduced staff on weekends, which can lead to delays in care, fewer available resources, and less experienced teams. Reduced staffing on weekends could also mean less thorough post-operative monitoring, increasing the risk of complications going unnoticed. Ultimately, hospitals with lower weekend staffing levels tend to have higher mortality rates for patients admitted during that time.
Surgeon Experience
Research indicates that more experienced surgeons are more likely to operate on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, while less experienced surgeons may handle procedures on Mondays and Fridays.
Fatigue & Stress
Surgeons, like all professionals, can experience fatigue as the week progresses. This could impact their performance, particularly during complex procedures.
Why Attorneys Should Care About Surgical Timing
If you’re an attorney handling a case that involves surgery, understanding how timing may have played a role is essential to strengthening your argument.
Strategies could include:
- Showing how injuries or complications could have been prevented by accounting for understaffing or inadequate resources.
- Revealing the systemic failures that lead to a lack of available resources in the first place.
- Requesting a detailed list of staffing schedules and levels that may have contributed to surgical outcomes.
In cases involving long-term health consequences, accurately projecting future medical costs will help ensure your client can access the medical care they need and deserve.
Empowering Your Practice with Medical Expertise
Our clients include personal injury attorneys whose cases involve medical data that can be incredibly cumbersome to sort through.
At Integrity, we help you understand the role of surgical timing in your case, if any, and what to do with that information to advocate for your client and achieve the best results.
We empower attorneys in the greater Pacific Northwest, including Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Alaska, and beyond with chart reviews and analysis, timelines of events (including an attorney copy with strategic insights and a streamlined copy stripped of comments for your experts), case strategy, and more.
Gain access to a team of experienced nurses who can help you uncover critical details, build compelling arguments, and achieve the best possible outcomes for your clients. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation.
Sources:
- No weak days? Impact of day in the week on surgical mortality | National Library of Medicine
- Association between day of the week of elective surgery and postoperative mortality | National Library of Medicine
- Day of week of procedure and 30 day mortality for elective surgery: retrospective analysis of hospital episode statistics | National Library of Medicine