Managing Patient Flow in the Emergency Department

Every hospital aims to increase its patient flow in the emergency department. Though, to achieve this hospital administration has to place priority on deploying strategies that will help them increase the overall patient flow in the emergency department on a daily basis. There are a number of ways through which hospital administration can ensure the patients that come to the hospital get great care in the most appropriate setting. Some of the ways patient flow can be improved in the emergency department have been stated in this article. 

Evaluate ER Space

Take a common example of an emergency department where there are a great number of patients waiting and/or receiving care. Obviously, new patients cannot make room for themselves if the space is not big enough or the space is poorly designed or maximum use. The very first step that hospital administration needs to take is to ensure the space for the patients to come and get treatment in the emergency department is adequately sized and utilized. If the patients see that the emergency room and waiting space is already full, they will likely leave. Sometimes even the appearance of the space being full causes patients to question if there is room for them. There is a lot that can be done to design ER spaces to flow more effectively and maximize all square footage thats available. Efforts to declutter, streamline work space, and free up room to wait are all ways to create space thats real and perceived. 

Set Expectations About Delays

Most of the times what patients end up disliking the most about an emergency department is that doctors or nurses fail to attend the patient in time. The patient has to wait for a long period of time and then they feel that they are not getting the kind of care that they expected to receive. This attitude discourages them and they might not want to come back to the same hospital based on their past experience - or worse they will report this lack of attention on the experience survey reports. Waiting for care is inevitable in an ER but paying attention to patients by keeping them updated on wait times and what happening behind the scene can go a long way in perceived wait times. 

Ask Questions

The patients in the emergency department are in need of getting checked and monitors at regular intervals. However, this doesn't always translate into them "feeling" checked on or cared for. Doctors and nurses should check on patients in between their tasks to ask if they are doing well, if they are comfortable, and if they are informed of whats happening. We have to remember that being in an ER is scary to most people so just checking in on how patients are feeling can help them feel safe and comfortable in the midst of chaos. 

-Rabin Pant, MBA