Abstract
Background: With the advent of laparoscopy, laparoscopic cholecystectomy has become one of the most commonly performed surgeries today. In many parts of the world laparoscopic cholecystectomy is performed as a day-care procedure. The aim was to compare the efficacy of clinical pathway versus no pathway in the management of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in terms of prolonged antibiotic usage and extended hospital stay.
Methods: A study was conducted on all the patients included in the clinical pathway. The results were compared between the patients undergoing surgery the year prior and one year after the implementation of clinical pathway.
Results: It is seen that, one year prior to the implementation of the pathway, the doses of antibiotics given were about 9-10 doses and the stay in the hospital was about 4-5 days and one year following implementation of the pathway it has been noticed that the number of doses of antibiotics has reduced and is about 4-5 doses and the stay in the hospital has shortened and is about 2-3 days.
Conclusions: This study shows us the importance of having guidelines in the form of a clinical pathway for surgical procedures as it helps to streamline patient care without any compromise in the quality of care.

Key words: Clinical pathway, Cholecystectomy, Antibiotic usage, Hospital stay