4 strategic ways to improve ED throughput

Improving emergency department throughput is critically important to patient satisfaction and your bottom line. One of the most important components driving patient satisfaction in the ED is the amount of time it takes to see a physician upon arrival.

Improved throughput can significantly cut your door-to-doctor time. Improved throughput can also help financially. The ability to cut wait times and move patients through your ED will allow you see more patients, increasing your ability to generate revenue.

The following solutions are consistently identified as some of the most important to improving throughput.

Lean process review of systems
More than half of U.S. hospitals utilize Lean, which can have a transformative effect on the structure and process of the ED. Lean reviews, processes and identifies bottlenecks, waste and other problems, then develops solutions using input from all hospital stakeholders.

Priority discharge from inpatient floors
The timing of inpatient discharge from the hospital can have a meaningful effect on throughput by making beds available when they are most needed. Review your historical data to understand ED demand and coordinate your discharge schedule accordingly.

Improved communication between ED and hospital medicine physicians
Standardized clinical protocols and admission processes motivate emergency physicians and hospitalists to communicate openly and consider one another's needs while also simplifying administrative communication.
Use of data to anticipate flow volume
You can predict patient flow and unscheduled arrivals with about 80 to 85 percent accuracy. The key questions are: 

  • How many patients are coming?
  • When are they coming?
  • What are they going to need?
  • Is our service capacity going to match patient demand?

You may think the complexity of your ED and patient care system make waits and delays inevitable. That does not have to be the case. Consistently focusing on these four areas can help improve ED throughput, thereby improving patient satisfaction and your bottom line.

Dr. Dighton Packard is CMO of Greenwood Village, Colo.-based Envision Healthcare. Founded in 2005, Envision Healthcare is a leading provider of physician-led, outsourced medical services.

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