GRANDVIEW MEDICAL CUTS ER WAITING TIMES SHARPLY

Grandview Medical Center has cut emergency department wait times using a new method to check on patients, helping it increase revenue, the hospital’s operator said.

The hospital, operated by Kettering Health Network, increased the percentage of patients seen by a doctor within 10 minutes from 38 percent to 71 percent using a new model for its ER, according to HealthLeaders Media, a health industry publication.

The hospital now uses a “provider in triage” model that’s a team approach between a physician and two nurses, which is more efficient than the old model of one triage nurse,

“This allows a provider to get a first glance at the patient and do a preliminary history and physical. The provider can then put in orders for tests that we can get started in the front while we are waiting on beds in the back,” Dr. Nikole Funk, medical director at Grandview Medical Center, told HealthLeaders.

With the old process of triaging one patient at a time, it was easy to fall behind.

“The triage process can take about 5 to 7 minutes; so, if you have three patients check in, you can fall 21 minutes behind,” Funk said.

Funk says the more efficient use of time in the emergency department can also save lives. The initiative started in July 2017 and the nursing staff had a key role in launching the new model, HealthLeaders said.

The new triage model also helps prepare Grandview’s ER for when its competitor Premier Health closes Good Samaritan’s ER on July 19.

“We are anticipating an annual patient volume increase between 20,000 and 25,000 with that closure,” Funk said.