speciallydedicated

DedicatedandEfficientHowtocutlengthofstay,lowerreadmissionsandraisepatientsatisfactionwithaDedicatedObservationUnit.
Adedicatedobservationcareunitformsanessentialcomponentoftheintegratednetworkofinpatientandoutpatientservicesthatcombinetoachievethetriple-aim:improvedpatientexperiences,betteroutcomesandloweredcosts.
USAcuteCareSolutionscanpointtoyearsofdata-andoutcomes-thatprovetheimmensevalueofadedicatedobservationcareunit.
TheUSACSObservationCareModelSeveralcharacteristicsdistinguishtheUSACSmodel:ADedicatedUnit.
OpenObservationUnitsinevitablyfallvictimtomisusebyotheroperationswithinthehospital.
Ourexperiencehasshownthatthisapproachcreatesbottlenecksandcrowding.
Maintainingaclosedunitpreventsthis,andprovidesahomeforspeciallytrainedproviderswithclearprotocolsandprocedures.
SpeciallyTrainedObservationProviders.
USACShasinvestedheavilyintrainingprogramsforNPsandPAstoensuresuperiorobservationcare.
Observationpatientsaredistinguishedbyaveryspecificsetofsymptomsandpresentations,allowingUSACStotailoritseducationalprogramsaroundthespecificsituationsandcriteriaourprovidersregularlyencounter.
Quality&EfficientCare.
AsinUSACSEmergencyDepartments,ObservationUnitsarefurnishedwithavarietyofqualitycontrolmechanismsandefficiencyprotocols.
AllUSACSObservationCareunitshaveachievedanaveragelength-of-stayunder20hours.
ClearAdmissionProtocols.
Failuretoadequatelydefinewhatqualifiesasanobservationpatientandfailuretoadequatelyeducatethecareprovidersonthecriteriaarehallmarksofanunderperformingobservationcareprogram.
USACSeducatesboththeEmergencyDepartmentprovidersandtheObservationCareprovidersonthecriteriaforobservationcarepatientswhilecontinuallyevaluatingindividualprotocolstocalibratethescopeasappropriate.
Figure1:ObservationLengthofStay:Non-USACSvs.
USACSUSACSKeyPerformanceGoals:ObservationCareAllUSACSObservationCareunitsaimforandhaveachievedthefollowingkeyperformancemeasures:Quality:Readmitrateoflessthan3percentThroughput:Alengthofstayoflessthan20hoursPatientSatisfaction:90thpercentileorhigherAdditionalBenefitsWhileUSACSunitshaveseendramaticdecreasesinLength-of-StayforitsObservationCarepatients,theintroductionofadedicatedUSACSObservationCareunitalsocontributesadditionalbenefits,includingreducedLeftWithoutBeingSeen(LWBS)ratesintheEmergencyDepartment,reducedrelianceondiversionandboardinghours,andreducedneedformanagementbyhospitalists.
HospitalsalsofacelessexposuretoRACaudits.
Finally,theadditionofadedicatedObservationCareunithashelpedUSACSpartnerhospitalspositionthemselvesforthefuture.
Asaresultofimprovedabilitytomanagegrowingpatientpopulations,hospitalsnowfacelesspressuretodevoteresourcestofacilitiesexpansionandmanagingovercrowding.
Instead,itcanfocusondeliveringqualityandefficientcaretotheircommunities.
CaseStudyObservationCareThatWorksNon-USACS