The unique contribution of Operating Department Practitioners to healthcare practice: an Appreciative Inquiry approach

Operating Department Practitioners (ODPs) are integral to perioperative care, providing expertise across anaesthetic, surgical, and recovery phases. Despite this breadth of responsibility, their unique contribution is often overlooked due to overlapping roles with theatre nurses and persistent occupational boundary disputes. This lack of recognition can hinder interprofessional collaboration and diminish ODP autonomy. In response, NHS England commissioned a workforce reform initiative to strengthen the ODP profession and clarify its distinct value within healthcare systems.

This study adopted an Appreciative Inquiry (AQ) approach to explore and articulate the unique contributions of ODPs. A convenience sample of ODP educators attending the College of Operating Department Practitioners (CODP) Clinical and University Educators Forum participated in
structured discussions across AQ phases: Discovery, Dream, and Design. Data were captured using Post-it™ notes, flip charts, and field notes, digitized via generative artificial intelligence (AI), and analysed thematically using AI-assisted methods, followed by manual conceptual refinement to isolate profession-specific attributes.

Four distinctive contributions, two unique and two shared, emerged:
1. Comprehensive perioperative expertise – ODPs graduate with the ability to navigate anaesthetics, surgery, and recovery seamlessly.
2. Operational leadership – Acting as coordinators and leaders, ODPs manage complex, time-sensitive theatre environments.
3. Shared contributions supported by ODP approaches: ODPs contribute significantly to team functioning, as they rarely work in isolation and
4. Employ strategies to enable effective interprofessional collaboration.

This study demonstrates that ODPs provide a systemic, enabling role that supports surgical and anaesthetic teams while maintaining patient safety. Reframing these contributions can enhance professional identity, confidence, and autonomy, and highlights opportunities for ODPs to extend their expertise into critical care and other advanced practice domains.