--- title: Theatre Effectiveness > Day of Surgery (DOS) Cancellations description: Analyse day of surgery cancellations by reason, specialty, and doctor to uncover patterns, reduce disruption, and improve theatre efficiency. --- [Skip to content](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#main-content) [Contact Us](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/kb-tickets/new) [![healthcare\_main\_logo-4](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/hubfs/HCL%20-%20Logos/healthcare_main_logo-4.svg)](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge) - [Getting Started](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/getting-started-with-systemview) - [Domain Overviews](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/learning-hub/domain-overviews) - [On-demand Learning](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/learning-hub/webinars/australia/on-demand-webinars) - [Webinars](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/learning-hub/webinars) Open main navigation Close main navigation - [Getting Started](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/getting-started-with-systemview) - [Domain Overviews](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/learning-hub/domain-overviews) - [On-demand Learning](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/learning-hub/webinars/australia/on-demand-webinars) - [Webinars](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/learning-hub/webinars) - [Contact Us](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/kb-tickets/new) - [Contact Us](https://info.healthcarelogic.com/contact-us) [Contact Us](https://info.healthcarelogic.com/contact-us) Search the Knowledge Base - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 1. 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[Performance & Activity Analysis](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery#performance-activity-analysis) November 13, 2025 # Theatre Effectiveness \> Day of Surgery (DOS) Cancellations ## Track and understand cancellations that occur on the day of surgery. #### **Location in SystemView:** SystemView \> Explore \> Surgery \> Theatre Effectiveness \> DOS Cancellations **In this article:** - [What it is](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#whatitis) - [Why it matters](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#whyitmatters) - [How to use it](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#howtouseit) - [How it works](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#howitworks) - [How it helps you](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#howithelps) - [Best practices](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#bestpractices) - [FAQs](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-dos-cancellations#faqs) --- ### **What it is** The **Day of Surgery (DOS) Cancellations** component shows the number and proportion of operations that were cancelled on the day they were scheduled to occur. It allows you to explore where and why cancellations are happening — across facilities, specialties, and doctors — and compare them to the total number of booked operations. ![](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Oct-22-2025-04-17-41-6353-AM.png?width=670&height=324&name=image-png-Oct-22-2025-04-17-41-6353-AM.png) --- ### **Why it matters** ##### *Every cancelled operation represents lost time, resources, and opportunity for patient care.* - Understand the scale and pattern of day-of-surgery cancellations. - Identify where cancellations are most frequent and which reasons are most common. - Reveal patterns linked to particular specialties, theatre groups, or session types. - Support service improvement and resource planning by targeting recurring causes. --- ### **How to use it** #### **Filter to focus your view** Use the **filters** to refine your analysis.. You can filter by: - **Facility / Hospital:** Choose the hospital you want to analyse. - **Session Type:** Filter by elective or emergency sessions. - **Time Period:** View weekly utilisation trends for up to the past 12 months. - **Theatre Group:** Filter between main operating theatres and other procedural areas. - **Cancellation Reason** – Focus your view on specific causes such as *patient unfit for surgery*, *no ICU bed*, or *emergency case required theatre.* After setting your filters, you can explore deeper by clicking through the charts — from hospital to specialty, then to doctor and individual session-level detail. #### **Explore day of surgery cancellation trends** The charts in this component compare **booked operations** against **day of surgery cancellations**, allowing you to see where cancellations are concentrated and how they’ve trended over time. You can: - Start at the facility view to see overall cancellation rates. - Drill into specific specialties to explore which services experience the highest proportion of cancellations. - Click into a doctor to view their individual allocations and cancellation patterns. - Select a session to see which operations were cancelled and their reasons. Toggle between: - **Total Time:** Shows total volumes of booked operations and cancellations. - **Session %:** Displays a trend line showing the percentage of booked operations were cancelled per week. ![msedge\_Uhbe0yM7Mo](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/hs-fs/hubfs/msedge_Uhbe0yM7Mo.gif?width=670&height=344&name=msedge_Uhbe0yM7Mo.gif) 💡 ***Tip:** Use the Cancellation Reason filter to isolate particular causes and reveal trends that may otherwise be hidden in aggregated data.* --- ### **How it works** The **DOS Cancellations** component compares the total number of booked operations with those cancelled on the day of surgery. #### **Calculation logic** - **Booked Operations:** All operations that were scheduled for that day. - **DOS Cancellations:** The number of those operations that were cancelled on the day of surgery. - **DOS Cancellations %:** (DOS Cancellations ÷ Booked Operations) × 100 --- ### **How it helps you** - **Identify trends:** Spot increases in day-of-surgery cancellations by specialty, doctor, or reason. - **Reveal systemic issues:** Link recurring causes to operational or resource constraints. - **Improve planning:** Use historical data to predict and mitigate future cancellations. - **Enhance patient care:** Reduce last-minute disruptions and improve theatre efficiency. --- ### **Best practices** #### **How often should I use it** | **What to do** | **How often** | **Who should do it** | **Why it helps** | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Review cancellation rates by specialty | **Weekly** | Theatre Managers, Service Leads | Detect early trends or emerging problem areas | | Analyse reasons for cancellations | **Monthly** | Clinical Leads & Coordinators | Identify operational bottlenecks or patient factors | | Drill down to doctor-level cancellations | **Monthly** | Specialty Leads | Support conversations about workflow or scheduling | | Correlate cancellations with other components | **Quarterly** | Executives, Business Analysts | Understand the wider impact on utilisation and throughput | #### **Pair with these components** - **🔗 [Theatre Effectiveness \> Utilisation](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-utilisation):** See how day of surgery cancellations affect overall theatre usage and highlight unused capacity caused by cancelled lists. - **🔗 [Elective Schedule Monitor](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-elective-schedule-monitor):** Identify scheduling or bed-availability issues that may be contributing to frequent cancellations. - **🔗 [Emergencies Now](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-emergencies-now):** Check if emergency cases are displacing elective operations and driving same-day cancellations. #### **Tips for success** - Focus on *Cancellation Reason* filtering to uncover actionable insights. - Isolate **DOS** **Cancellations** in the chart legend to focus the analysis. - Review trends by specialty first, then click through to doctors and sessions for detail. - Combine with [Utilisation ›](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-utilisation) and [Late Starts ›](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/knowledge/surgery-theatre-effectiveness-late-starts) for a complete picture of theatre efficiency and lost time. --- #### **Want a detailed breakdown?** If you’d like a more detailed look at every filter, chart, and tile in this component, you can download the **Theatre Effectiveness Day of Surgery Cancellations Guide** below. 📎 **Download:** [Theatre Effectiveness \> Day of Surgery (DOS) Cancellations Guide](https://academy.healthcarelogic.com/hubfs/Surgery%20-%20Theatre%20Effectiveness_DOS%20Cancellations_Guide.pdf) --- ### **❓ FAQs** **Q. How are Day of Surgery cancellations calculated?** A. 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