Operating rooms (ORs) are due to see a technological makeover, as healthcare spending cuts and an increased elderly population demands that surgery be as efficient as possible, according to medical experts at GlobalData.
Operating rooms are the revenue generating space for hospitals. As a result, hospitals are seeking operating theaters that will support optimized presentation and competence.
Safety concerns are at an all time high, with infection control emerging as a major issue in operating rooms.
The rising alertness about the need to minimize human errors and promote the effective management of operating rooms is driving the uptake of novel and highly developed operating room solutions.
The ageing population in the US is expected to bring about a significant increase in surgical procedures by 2020, which is expected to contribute to growth in the OR solutions market.
The demand for surgery will therefore grow, and surgeons will be expected to perform procedures more quickly in order to meet demand.
Furthermore, OR solutions can prove vital in this way - for instance, equipment can be easily positioned if mounted on ceiling booms, decreasing the set-up and clean-up time of ORs.
Therefore, OR solutions help generate greater hospital revenue by reducing OR turn-over times and enhancing operating efficiency.
As baby boomers age, the need for healthcare grows, but the global economic recession has led to stringent healthcare cuts in many countries.
Moreover, these funding cuts have led to a shortage of healthcare professionals in hospitals, as staffing is minimized in order to save costs.
OR solutions decrease the number of supporting staff required during surgery, as equipment can perform simple tasks which remove the need for an assisting nurse.
Despite the savings which can be made on staffing, the high costs of OR solutions can put the technology out of reach of struggling healthcare trusts.
OR solutions can cost anywhere from USD250,000 to USD2 million, and economic uncertainty in major European markets coupled with rising healthcare expenditure due to ageing population can have an adverse impact on OR solutions sales.
Besides, the global OR solutions market was valued at USD1.86 billion in 2011 and is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.4 percent to reach USD3.1 billion in 2018.
