A good management of bookings for programmed surgical treatments (waiting lists) aims at granting all citizens equal access opportunities, transparency and clear procedures, and adequate information on the selection criteria used, and on how to have access to the services. We have created a working group which proposes guidelines in line with the Emilia Romagna Region directions, with deliberation of the Regional Council number 557 of March 1, 2000. In our Operative Unit, the staff in charge of the Pre-hospitalisation Service fills in the Programmed Hospitalisation Booking Register. The enrolment of a patient in the waiting list follows a request by one of the doctors belonging to our team. After the booking, the patient receives a receipt containing various kinds of information. After taking note of the priority level he/she has been assigned and of the expected waiting time, the patient will have to sign a form stating that he/she accepts to be enrolled in the waiting lists. For longer hospitalisations (Prosthetic Surgery), all waiting patients will periodically receive written communication concerning a revision of the waiting lists. This procedure allows our hospital to have a realistic idea of the waiting time, thus creating a real collaboration with the patient for immediate information about any waiver or temporary suspensions. This also makes it possible to avoid continuous changes to the programmed surgeries. The order in which patients have access to hospitalisation performances is based on the following factors: 1. Level of clinical priority: there are 3 priority levels. The degree number decreases as the clinical urgency increases, based on the patient's present time conditions and the potential evolution of his/her pathology. 2. Chronological order of enrolment in the list: the date in which the request for hospitalisation reaches the professional in charge of accepting bookings. 3. Necessary resources: Ø Number of beds Ø Surgical instruments Ø Staff Ø Surgery room time The degree of availability of these or other resources can determine a different access order to programmed hospitalisation compared to the one based on the priority level and the chronological order. The length and the times of the waiting lists are revised every six months.