Strategies for waiting list management and access prioritisation for elective surgery in public health systems: a scoping review protocol
6 affiliations
- 1Graduate Program in Health Sciences, University of Brasilia Faculty of Health Sciences, Brasília, Brazil
- 2Ministry of Health, Brasília, Brazil
- 3Pan American Health Organization Brazil, Brasília, Brazil
- 4Graduate Program of Health Sciences, Escola Superior de Ciencias da Saude, Brasília, Brazil
- 5Graduate Program of Health Sciences, Ministry of Health, Brasília, Brazil
- 6Departament of Human Movement Sciences, Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
Abstract
Introduction: Elective surgery waiting lists remain a persistent challenge in public health systems, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although strategies such as prioritisation criteria, centralised intake, pooled waiting lists, governance mechanisms and scheduling reforms have been implemented internationally, evidence remains fragmented. It often provides limited information on implementation requirements, sustainability, equity and transferability across health-system contexts. This scoping review aims to map and synthesise evidence on strategies for elective-surgery access management in public health systems, focusing on implementation determinants and contextual factors relevant to transferability.
Methods and analysis: The scoping review will follow the Arksey and O’Malley framework, incorporating current Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidance, and will be reported according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). MEDLINE (via PubMed), Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, CENTRAL and LILACS/BVS will be searched without language or publication-date restrictions, alongside prespecified grey-literature sources and citation tracking. Eligible evidence will include primary studies and secondary policy, technical and grey-literature sources addressing elective-surgery access management. Two reviewers will independently perform study selection, data charting, critical appraisal using design-appropriate JBI tools and evidence synthesis. Findings will be synthesised narratively using the Population–Concept–Context framework and stratified by health-system characteristics, surgical specialty, strategy type, implementation level and evidence-source type. Implementation-related findings will be coded using prespecified Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research domains and constructs. Studies conducted outside predefined public health-system contexts will undergo a structured transferability assessment covering financing and governance, referral and waiting-list organisation, regulation and accountability, workforce, infrastructure and service capacity, and information systems. Stakeholder consultation will provide perspectives on applicability, feasibility and transferability without altering eligibility, extracted data, or evidence synthesis.
Ethics and dissemination: Ethics approval is not applicable since no original data will be collected. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publication, conference presentations and policy-relevant knowledge translation activities.
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BibTeX
@article{salgado2026strategies,
title = {{Strategies for waiting list management and access prioritisation for elective surgery in public health systems: a scoping review protocol}},
author = {Carlos Amilcar Salgado and Jozinélio Severino Teixeira and Claudilene Sousa Fortaleza and Rodrigo da Silva Almeida and João Marcelo Barreto Silva and Paulo Ricardo Giusti Silva and Maria Stella Peccin and Aline Mizusaki Imoto and Munik Pereira Santos Teixeira and Leila Bernarda Donato Göttems and Fábio Ferreira Amorim},
journal = {BMJ Open},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1136/bmjopen-2026-125369},
url = {https://bmjopen.bmj.com/lookup/doi/10.1136/bmjopen-2026-125369},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Strategies for waiting list management and access prioritisation for elective surgery in public health systems: a scoping review protocol
AU - Carlos Amilcar Salgado
AU - Jozinélio Severino Teixeira
AU - Claudilene Sousa Fortaleza
AU - Rodrigo da Silva Almeida
AU - João Marcelo Barreto Silva
AU - Paulo Ricardo Giusti Silva
AU - Maria Stella Peccin
AU - Aline Mizusaki Imoto
AU - Munik Pereira Santos Teixeira
AU - Leila Bernarda Donato Göttems
AU - Fábio Ferreira Amorim
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/02
JO - BMJ Open
DO - 10.1136/bmjopen-2026-125369
UR - https://bmjopen.bmj.com/lookup/doi/10.1136/bmjopen-2026-125369
AB - Introduction: Elective surgery waiting lists remain a persistent challenge in public health systems, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although strategies such as prioritisation criteria, centralised intake, pooled waiting lists, governance mechanisms and scheduling reforms have been implemented internationally, evidence remains fragmented. It often provides limited information on implementation requirements, sustainability, equity and transferability across health-system contexts. This scoping review aims to map and synthesise evidence on strategies for elective-surgery access management in public health systems, focusing on implementation determinants and contextual factors relevant to transferability. Methods and analysis: The scoping review will follow the Arksey and O’Malley framework, incorporating current Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidance, and will be reported according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). MEDLINE (via PubMed), Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, CENTRAL and LILACS/BVS will be searched without language or publication-date restrictions, alongside prespecified grey-literature sources and citation tracking. Eligible evidence will include primary studies and secondary policy, technical and grey-literature sources addressing elective-surgery access management. Two reviewers will independently perform study selection, data charting, critical appraisal using design-appropriate JBI tools and evidence synthesis. Findings will be synthesised narratively using the Population–Concept–Context framework and stratified by health-system characteristics, surgical specialty, strategy type, implementation level and evidence-source type. Implementation-related findings will be coded using prespecified Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research domains and constructs. Studies conducted outside predefined public health-system contexts will undergo a structured transferability assessment covering financing and governance, referral and waiting-list organisation, regulation and accountability, workforce, infrastructure and service capacity, and information systems. Stakeholder consultation will provide perspectives on applicability, feasibility and transferability without altering eligibility, extracted data, or evidence synthesis. Ethics and dissemination: Ethics approval is not applicable since no original data will be collected. Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publication, conference presentations and policy-relevant knowledge translation activities.
SN - 2044-6055
SN - 2044-6055
ER -