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Staff in the ED shared ideas for continuous improvement on a white board in the department during the redesign.
Very few people actually look forward to a trip to the Emergency Department (ED). But with a newly transformed care model and redesigned infrastructure, patients and families are increasingly satisfied with their experience at BWH’s ED – and the latest Press Ganey scores prove it.
“With the new processes we now have in place and the opening of our new patient care area, we are taking care of more patients more rapidly and with greater patient satisfaction,” said Josh Kosowsky, MD, clinical director of Emergency Medicine. “Our scores have been increasing each month, and I am optimistic that we will continue on that upward trend.”
According to the most recent Press Ganey Inpatient Satisfaction Survey results, patients admitted to the hospital from the ED reported record satisfaction on all questions about BWH ED performance, enabling the ED to finish the quarter with an all-time high mean score of 87.7. In addition, the rating for admission process from the ED (88.3) was also the highest recorded since the survey began, and included an all-time high “speed of admission” score of 86.6.
BWH also recorded its second highest scores for patients treated in the ED and discharged home (85.1). This score places BWH nearly at its goal of the 75th percentile when compared with like-size emergency departments with level 1 trauma programs that use Press Ganey.
Over the last two years, ED staff have created a more streamlined and patient-centered front-end process, aimed at decreasing wait times and eliminating redundant steps. A new initiative encouraging the presence of a family member or other support along with the patient in the ED has also been implemented.
“We had to think through our entire process of care, from the moment patients arrive until they leave the hospital or are admitted,” said Heidi Crim, RN, nursing director of the ED. “We solicited input from patients and frontline staff, who participated in a series of simulations to test out the new process. In the fall and spring, we began implementing the new process, and I am thrilled that it has already yielded positive results.”