It’s 3 a.m. Do You Know Where Your Bundle Patient Is?

CMS began the movement toward broader accountability for care in October 2012 when it introduced the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP). Under the program, hospitals with relatively higher rates of 30-day readmissions are financially penalized.

The introduction of alternative payment models like CJR and the recently proposed Episode Payment Models (EPMs) for cardiac care has further shifted financial responsibility for the occurrence of post-discharge adverse events onto hospitals. Hospital success in the face of current payment reform initiatives depends upon the ability to understand and manage patient care holistically as patients transition from an inpatient setting to post-acute care, and throughout the post-acute period.

Emergency Department (ED) utilization is often misunderstood within the context of bundles. On one hand, it represents a potentially high cost interaction with a patient that often results from a complication of care in the inpatient setting. Reducing ED visits can represent savings opportunities that are rewarded under EPMs. On the other hand, ED visits may also provide critical triage care that can avoid much more costly readmissions. Reducing these ED visits may actually increase episode costs.

Understanding appropriate ED utilization and developing proper ED strategies can ensure that patients receive the most cost-effective care in the most appropriate setting.

“It’s 3 a.m. Do You Know Download the white paper, Where Your Bundle Patient Is? Strategies for Emergency Department Usage in Bundles,”

to learn how to improve ED usage within bundles so that outcome quality increases while costs are controlled.

“Understanding appropriate ED utilization and developing proper ED strategies can ensure that patients receive the most cost-effective care in the most appropriate setting.”