Table 1 Literature related to research... | Emerald Publishing

Table 1

Literature related to research themes

Author	Study focus	Lean/AI/I4.0 element	Key contribution to waiting time reduction	Key limitations	Relevance to this study
Bachelet et al. (2019)	Interventions to reduce elective surgery waiting times	Lean pathways, scheduling optimisation	Demonstrates need for pathway redesign, prioritisation and OR planning	Variability across settings	Provides baseline Lean pathway optimisation logic
Mahmoud et al. (2021)	Impact of Lean management on staff and performance	Lean management	Shows reduction in waiting times and improved teamwork and learning	Risk of work intensification	Confirms Lean effectiveness in reducing delays
Botha et al. (2024)	AI risks in healthcare delivery	AI governance and safety	Highlights implementation risks affecting adoption of AI-driven scheduling	Conceptual and policy-oriented	Identifies barriers to AI integration in Lean systems
Stafinski et al. (2022)	Policy and operational approaches to surgical wait times	Lean/Six Sigma + system redesign	Shows effectiveness of standardised pathways, funding models and process redesign	Context-specific policy variation	Supports system-level Lean interventions
Dawson et al. (2022)	Clinical outcomes of prolonged waiting time	Outcome-based healthcare analysis	Demonstrates negative impact of long waiting times on patient outcomes	Measurement inconsistency	Strengthens urgency of reducing OT waiting time
Ebrahim et al. (2025)	Rural surgical access delays	Workforce and system coordination	Shows structural causes of delays and need for integrated planning	Rural context limitations	Highlights importance of resource coordination
O'Rielly et al. (2021), Strömblad et al. (2021)	Predictive models for surgical duration	AI predictive analytics	Improves surgical scheduling accuracy and OT utilisation	Limited real-time integration	Demonstrates AI role in OT scheduling optimisation
Abdallah and Alkhaldi (2019)	Lean with JIT and TQM in healthcare	Lean + JIT + TQM	Improves equipment efficiency and reduces operational delays	Limited digital integration	Provides Lean operational efficiency base

Author	Study focus	Lean/AI/I4.0 element	Key contribution to waiting time reduction	Key limitations	Relevance to this study
Bachelet et al. (2019)	Interventions to reduce elective surgery waiting times	Lean pathways, scheduling optimisation	Demonstrates need for pathway redesign, prioritisation and OR planning	Variability across settings	Provides baseline Lean pathway optimisation logic
Mahmoud et al. (2021)	Impact of Lean management on staff and performance	Lean management	Shows reduction in waiting times and improved teamwork and learning	Risk of work intensification	Confirms Lean effectiveness in reducing delays
Botha et al. (2024)	AI risks in healthcare delivery	AI governance and safety	Highlights implementation risks affecting adoption of AI-driven scheduling	Conceptual and policy-oriented	Identifies barriers to AI integration in Lean systems
Stafinski et al. (2022)	Policy and operational approaches to surgical wait times	Lean/Six Sigma + system redesign	Shows effectiveness of standardised pathways, funding models and process redesign	Context-specific policy variation	Supports system-level Lean interventions
Dawson et al. (2022)	Clinical outcomes of prolonged waiting time	Outcome-based healthcare analysis	Demonstrates negative impact of long waiting times on patient outcomes	Measurement inconsistency	Strengthens urgency of reducing OT waiting time
Ebrahim et al. (2025)	Rural surgical access delays	Workforce and system coordination	Shows structural causes of delays and need for integrated planning	Rural context limitations	Highlights importance of resource coordination
O'Rielly et al. (2021), Strömblad et al. (2021)	Predictive models for surgical duration	AI predictive analytics	Improves surgical scheduling accuracy and OT utilisation	Limited real-time integration	Demonstrates AI role in OT scheduling optimisation
Abdallah and Alkhaldi (2019)	Lean with JIT and TQM in healthcare	Lean + JIT + TQM	Improves equipment efficiency and reduces operational delays	Limited digital integration	Provides Lean operational efficiency base