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Bed Expediters Ensure Patient Flow for Optimum Healthcare, Safety & Cost Control
For the first several years of his tenure as Director of Operations at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, Hiram Torres spent an enormous amount of time fielding e-mails. They were all about the same subject: patient transport.
"In the emergency department (ED), there is a lot going on from the moment a patient is assigned a bed. Nurses, doctors, administrators all need to get and share information. The patient has to go through various departments as prescribed - For example, radiology for X-rays, and then back to the ED to wait for results," Torres said. "When the flow of these services isn't managed properly, we have overcrowding and major backups in all departments."
And, when there isn't bed turnover, the hospital is not serving its patients as they deserve to be treated and is also needlessly wasting time and money.
Torres developed what he called a "bed expediter" program for his facility and reached out to Sergio Benvenuto, Jr. owner of Modern Facilities Services, to implement his plan. Torres said the company works hand-in-hand with its clients. And, he should know; Bronx-Lebanon had been a client of Modern's for almost 20 years.
Mobilizing his healthcare team, Benvenuto stepped up to the challenge and eagerly took on the new service it calls Patient Flow Management.
"We placed a bed expediter in Bronx-Lebanon's Emergency Room 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The new hire coordinates a lot of job functions to expedite the patient's stay," Benvenuto explains. "Everything from how and when a patient gets assigned to an ED bed to when they are admitted or discharged is in the hands of the capable coordinator."
Benvenuto jumped at the opportunity to implement Torres' innovative idea. "We are always looking for ways to enhance our healthcare facilities programs. The Patient Flow Manager is a much-needed service in today's busy hospital settings. We are pleased to have developed such a successful program and look forward to putting what we've learned and perfected at Bronx-Lebanon to use in other healthcare facilities."
There are several different departments and services that to be managed to ensure that the ED flows properly. There is triage, nurses, doctors, insurance information collection, as well as all the departments that need to perform prescribed services - blood samples and x-rays, for example.
A bed expediter coordinates all these services and makes sure that the patient moves quickly and efficiently through the emergency department cycle. This important new member of the ED team makes sure that the patient is calm and comfortable as they are waiting, being transported and even through the admittance or discharge process.
Of course, at first, hospital personnel were skeptical about the new position. Longtime employees were reticent to give up their duties. But now they see how much easier the workday flows and they welcome the bed expeditor with open arms. This kind of coordination in a busy ED is invaluable.
"In an area that is overcrowded, the expediter is invaluable," Torres said. "Before we put in a bed expeditor, we had a patient flow meeting where we discussed overcrowding. We realized it was taking two hours to move a patient from the ED to a floor. Communication gaps were all over the place. Nurses in the ED couldn't get nurses on the floor on the phone to find out information. Patients were waiting for transport."
And Torres received email after angry email!
Not anymore, explained Torres. Now, after the program has been in place for several months, there is no going back. "No more transport emails for me," he said, smiling. "Now I can focus on what it takes to run the operations of this facility with the confidence that my emergency department is running like a well-oiled machine."
In addition to moving patients through the emergency room process, a bed expediter also is able to track trends and provide the hospital with important data. "We now know about problems before they get away from us and we can deal with issues as they arise, thanks to information collected on a regular basis. Having a 24/7 bed expediter ensures efficiency, cuts costs and promises tremendous ROI," Torres added.
Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center is a Modern Facilities Services client for the long-term.
"Not only do they regularly provide the absolute best service, but you can see from their willingness to take on my bed expediter pilot project that they will go above and beyond to meet customer needs," Torres said. "And, when I need to contact Modern, I don't get a regional service manager the way I would with a much larger company. I get the owner. And I get to talk to him today -- now. If I need more people or equipment, I get it right away. There is no waiting. I am treated as an important customer every time I talk with Sergio Benvenuto."
Why does Bronx-Lebanon do business with Modern Facilities Services?
"We chose them because they had a very good reputation. We continue to do business with them because they are consistently good at what they do" Torres concluded. "When it comes to facility maintenance, I would go with no other company than Modern Facilities Services. They are the best at what they do."
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