The patient volume in Los Alamitos (Calif.) Medical Center's emergency department was on the rise, thanks in part to other area EDs shutting down.
To better manage the increased patient volume, Los Alamitos partnered with EmCare, a physician services provider. EmCare took the following steps to help Los Alamitos' ED, according to a case study:
• Found a strong new ED medical director with more than 12 years of experience
• Collaborated with nursing leadership on patient rounding
• Identified equipment needs to accelerate throughput
• Improved communication between emergency physicians and cardiologists, radiologists and primary care physicians
• Implemented a medical scribe program
In partnership with EmCare, the hospital was able to lower the rate of patients who left without treatment by 58 percent and keep its discharge length of stay under the national average, according to the case study.