Improvements to emergency department length of stay and user satisfaction after implementation of an integrated consult order.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Subspecialty consultation in the emergency department (ED) is a vital, albeit time consuming, part of modern medicine. Traditional consultation requires manual paging to initiate communication. Although consult orders through the electronic health record (EHR) may help, they do not facilitate 2-way communication. However, the impact of combining these systems within the EHR is unknown. We estimated the effect of implementing an integrated paging system on ED workflow efficiency and user attitudes.

Methods

We integrated a messaging system into order entry at our tertiary care academic ED, such that placing a consult order simultaneously paged the consultant. We measured ED workflow efficiency metrics (length of stay [LOS], consult initiation time) and MD/nurse pract

SUBMITTER: Ravi A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10028414 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature