Researchers examined effects of an improvement of ultrasound wait times in an emergency department. The intervention removed steps in the ultrasound process caregivers perceived as “wasteful.”
After the ultrasound processes was made more efficient, physicians ordered ultrasounds for more patients, ordering an ultrasound 11.5 percent more often than before the intervention. As a result, length of stay for patients with abdominal pain increased 30 minutes, and wait time to enter the ED increased by 26 minutes.
The study concluded that while individual patients may benefit from process improvements, creating resource availability may spur more demand for that resource, complicating patient flow through a hospital system. Researchers commented some apparent inefficiencies may be vital to preventing further inefficiencies in patient flow.
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