Researchers studied nearly 2,000 emergency room patient visits over 18 months, examining lead times and efficiency measures for each visit both before and after standard procedure included teamwork.
The number of patients handled between conditions was approximately the same, though the median time it took for a patient to see a physician decreased by 11 minutes and total patient visit time decreased by 39 minutes. The four-hour target was achieved in 71 percent of teamwork visits and 59 percent of standard visits.
The study concluded while teamwork-based care seems to have an effect on some emergency department processes, it is not by itself sufficient for meeting metrics of care.
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