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Provider in Triage Process Redesign

Background

USA Health Providence Hospital is a 349-bed full-service hospital in Mobile, Alabama. with an annual ED volume of more than 50,000 visits.

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Hospital Beds:

349

ED Beds:

27

Annual Volume:

51,000

Daily Physician Coverage:

36 hours

Daily APC Coverage:

48 hours

The Challenge

The hospital wanted to continue to ensure the highest standard of patient care by creating a more efficient and effective front-end system in the wake of the Delta and Omicron surges which strained ED capacity and staffing.

The ApolloMD Clinical Operations team collaborated with Ascension Providence clinical and administrative teams to achieve enhanced outcomes by incorporating multiple process improvements. Each new process was implemented utilizing existing resources, staffing and physical space to improve wait times and enhance outcomes.

The Approach

1. Redesigned Provider in Triage (PIT) Process

  • Revamped the physical space to mitigate the arrival surge bottleneck at reception
  • Created multiple intake spaces to allow for a dynamic, team-based approach to triage and MSE
  • Repurposed front-end area to allow for specimen collection and “super-track”

2. Integrated PIT + Lower Acuity Pathway Process

  • Redesigned front-end processes to enable a dynamic approach to all “dischargeable” patients
  • Facilitated increased flexibility to help extend existing provider, nursing, and support team resources
  • Utilized process integration to increase front-end capacity while helping to decompress the main department
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First-Year Results

Two key factors impacting quality, patient safety, and patient experience are “Arrival to Provider” and “Left Without Being Seen.” Both metrics saw immediate improvement within thirty days of engagement, as well as continuous improvement throughout the year.

 

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