scholarly journals Emergency Department Patient Flow: The Influence of Hospital Census Variables on Emergency Department Length of Stay

2009 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. 597-602 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray Lucas ◽  
Heather Farley ◽  
Joseph Twanmoh ◽  
Andrej Urumov ◽  
Nils Olsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Emergency Department Patient

scholarly journals Specialized fast track: a sustainable model to improve emergency department patient flow

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 40
Author(s):  
Emilpaolo Manno ◽  
Marco Pesce ◽  
Umberto Stralla ◽  
Federico Festa ◽  
Silvio Geninatti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Fast Track ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Wait Time ◽  
Emergency Department Patient ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Time Length ◽  
Hospital Units ◽  
Ed Visits

Objective: Emergency department (ED) overcrowding is a hospital-wide problem that demands a whole-hospital solution. We developed and implemented a fast track model for streaming ED patients with low-acuity illness or injury to specialized care areas (gynecology-obstetrics, orthopedics-trauma, pediatrics, and primary care) staffed by existing specialist resources with access to general ED services. The study aim was to determine whether streaming of ED visits into specialized fast track areas increased operational efficiency and improved patient flow in a mixed adult and pediatric ED without incurring extra costs.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the ED discharge records of patients who were mainstreamed or fast tracked during the 3-year period from 1 January 2010 through 31 December 2012. ED visits were identified according to a five-level triage scheme; performance indicators were compared for: wait time, length of stay, leave before being seen and revisit rates.Results: A reduction in wait time, length of stay, and leave before being seen rate was seen with fast track streaming (p < .01). These improvements were achieved without additional medical and nurse staffing.Conclusions: Specialized fast track streaming helped us meet patients’ care needs and contain costs. Lower-acuity patients were seen quickly by a specialist and safely discharged or admitted to the hospital without diverting resources from patients with high-acuity illness or injury. Involvement of all stakeholders in seeking a sustainable solution to ED crowding as a hospital-wide problem was key to enhancing cooperation between the ED and the hospital units.

Accuracy of Computer Simulation to Predict Patient Flow during Mass-Casualty Incidents

2008 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 354-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey M. Franc-Law ◽  
Micheal J. Bullard ◽  
F. Della Corte
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Computer Simulation ◽  
Patient Care ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Emergency Department Patient ◽  
Simulation Software ◽  
Simulated Patients ◽  
Disaster Plan ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Patient Database

AbstractIntroduction:Although most hospitals have an emergency department disas- ter plan, most never have been implemented in a true disaster or been tested objectively. Computer simulation may be a useful tool to predict emergency department patient flow during a disaster.Purpose:The aim of this study was to compare the accuracy of a computer simulation in predicting emergency department patient flow during a masscasualty incident with that of a real-time, virtual, live exercise.Methods:History, physical examination findings, and laboratory results for 136 simulated patients were extracted from the disastermed.ca patient database as used as input into a computer simulation designed to represent the emergency department at the University of Alberta Hospital.The computer simulation was developed using a commercially available simulation software platform (2005, SimProcess, CACI Products, San Diego CA). Patient flow parameters were compared to a previous virtual, live exercise using the same data set.Results:Although results between the computer simulation and the live exercise appear similar, they differ statistically with respect to many patient benchmarks. There was a marked difference between the triage codes assigned during the live exercise and those from the patient database; however, this alone did not account for the differences between the patient groups. It is likely that novel approaches to patient care developed by the live exercise group, which are difficult to model by computer software, contributed to differences between the groups. Computer simulation was useful, however, in predicting how small changes to emergency department structure, such as adding staff or patient care areas, can influence patient flow.Conclusions:Computer simulation is helpful in defining the effects of changes to a hospital disaster plan. However, it cannot fully replace participant exercises. Rather, computer simulation and live exercises are complementary, and both may be useful for disaster plan evaluation.

The impact of medical specialist staffing on emergency department patient flow and satisfaction

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Christien van der Linden ◽  
Roeline A.Y. de Beaufort ◽  
Sven A.G. Meylaerts ◽  
Crispijn L. van den Brand ◽  
Naomi van der Linden
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Emergency Department Patient ◽  
Medical Specialist ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals The Sydney triage to admission risk tool (START) to improve patient flow in an emergency department: a model of care implementation pilot study

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anja Ebker-White ◽  
Kendall J. Bein ◽  
Saartje Berendsen Russell ◽  
Michael M. Dinh
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Control Sample ◽  
Patient Admission ◽  
Implementation Study ◽  
Model Of Care ◽  
Early Assessment ◽  
Pilot Implementation

Abstract Background The Sydney Triage to Admission Risk Tool (START) is a validated clinical analytics tool designed to estimate the probability of in-patient admission based on Emergency Department triage characteristics. Methods This was a single centre pilot implementation study using a matched case control sample of patients assessed at ED triage. Patients in the intervention group were identified at triage by the START tool as likely requiring in-patient admission and briefly assessed by an ED Consultant. Bed management were notified of these patients and their likely admitting team based on senior early assessment. Matched controls were identified on the same day of presentation if they were admitted to the same in-patient teams as patients in the intervention group and same START score category. Outcomes were ED length of stay and proportion of patients correctly classified as an in-patient admission by the START tool. Results One hundred and thirteen patients were assessed using the START-based model of care. When compared with matched control patients, this intervention model of care was associated with a significant reduction in ED length of stay [301 min (IQR 225–397) versus 423 min (IQR 297–587) p < 0.001] and proportion of patients meeting 4 h length of stay thresholds increased from 24 to 45% (p < 0.001). Conclusion In this small pilot implementation study, the START tool, when used in conjunction with senior early assessment was associated with a reduction in ED length of stay. Further controlled studies are now underway to further examine its utility across other ED settings.

scholarly journals THE EFFECT OF A BOARDING RESTRICTION PROTOCOL ON EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT CROWDING

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji Hwan Lee ◽  
Ji Hoon Kim ◽  
Incheol Park ◽  
Hyun Sim Lee ◽  
Joon Min Park ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Primary Outcome ◽  
Treatment Time ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Hospital Beds ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Day Of The Week ◽  
Ed Crowding ◽  
Post Period

ABSTRACT Background Access block due to a lack of hospital beds causes emergency department (ED) crowding. We initiated the boarding restriction protocol that limits ED length of stay (LOS) for patients awaiting hospitalization to 24 hours from arrival. This study aimed to determine the effect of the protocol on ED crowding. Method This was a pre-post comparative study to compare ED crowding before and after protocol implementation. The primary outcome was the red stage fraction with more than 71 occupying patients in the ED (severe crowding level). LOS in the ED, treatment time and boarding time were compared. Additionally, the pattern of boarding patients staying in the ED according to the day of the week was confirmed. Results Analysis of the number of occupying patients in the ED, measured at 10-minute intervals, indicated a decrease from 65.0 (51.0-79.0) to 55.0 (43.0-65.0) in the pre- and post-periods, respectively (p<0.0001). The red stage fraction decreased from 38.9% to 15.1% of the pre- and post-periods, respectively (p<0.0001). The proportion beyond the goal of this protocol of 24 hours decreased from 7.6% to 4.0% (p<0.0001). The ED LOS of all patients was similar: 238.2 (134.0-465.2) and 238.3 (136.9-451.2) minutes in the pre- and post-periods, respectively. In admitted patients, ED LOS decreased from 770.7 (421.4-1587.1) to 630.2 (398.0-1156.8) minutes (p<0.0001); treatment time increased from 319.6 (198.5-482.8) to 344.7 (213.4-519.5) minutes (p<0.0001); and boarding time decreased from 298.9 (109.5-1149.0) to 204.1 (98.7-545.7) minutes (p<0.0001). In the pre-period, boarding patients accumulated in the ED on weekdays, with the accumulation resolved on Fridays; this pattern was alleviated in the post-period. Conclusions The protocol effectively resolved excessive ED crowding by alleviating the accumulation of boarding patients in the ED on weekdays. Additional studies should be conducted on changes this protocol brings to patient flow hospital-wide.

scholarly journals Length of stay as quality indicator in emergency departments: analysis of determinants in the German Emergency Department Data Registry (AKTIN registry)

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronny Otto ◽  
Sabine Blaschke ◽  
Wiebke Schirrmeister ◽  
Susanne Drynda ◽  
Felix Walcher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Department ◽  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Emergency Departments ◽  
Patient Flow ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Organizational Factors ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Adult Age ◽  
Emergency Department Data ◽  
Data Registry

AbstractSeveral indicators reflect the quality of care within emergency departments (ED). The length of stay (LOS) of emergency patients represents one of the most important performance measures. Determinants of LOS have not yet been evaluated in large cohorts in Germany. This study analyzed the fixed and influenceable determinants of LOS by evaluating data from the German Emergency Department Data Registry (AKTIN registry). We performed a retrospective evaluation of all adult (age ≥ 18 years) ED patients enrolled in the AKTIN registry for the year 2019. Primary outcome was LOS for the whole cohort; secondary outcomes included LOS stratified by (1) patient-related, (2) organizational-related and (3) structure-related factors. Overall, 304,606 patients from 12 EDs were included. Average LOS for all patients was 3 h 28 min (95% CI 3 h 27 min–3 h 29 min). Regardless of other variables, patients admitted to hospital stayed 64 min longer than non-admitted patients. LOS increased with patients’ age, was shorter for walk-in patients compared to medical referral, and longer for non-trauma presenting complaints. Relevant differences were also found for acuity level, day of the week, and emergency care levels. We identified different factors influencing the duration of LOS in the ED. Total LOS was dependent on patient-related factors (age), disease-related factors (presentation complaint and triage level), and organizational factors (weekday and admitted/non-admitted status). These findings are important for the development of management strategies to optimize patient flow through the ED and thus to prevent overcrowding.

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