Enhanced processes, communication work to reduce offload delays
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 1, 2019
Enhanced processes, communication work to reduce offload delays
‘The whole is greater than the parts when it comes to delivering health care’
Essex County, ON – Ambulance offload delays are continuing to decrease because of enhanced protocols and communication between area health care agencies and new technology that lets Essex-Windsor EMS monitor in real time the movement of patients and the ebb and flow of patient volumes at area hospitals.
Offload delays result in ambulances sitting idle at emergency rooms while patients wait for beds. They put a strain on the system, influencing response times and paramedic staffing, impacting service delivery, cost and overall staff morale. Offload times have been trending downwards since Essex-Windsor EMS and area hospitals began changing the pattern of emergency room use in late 2018 and using a real-time situational dashboard.
Over the past decade, the use of “destination protocols” has been increasing in Windsor-Essex. These protocols meant patients experiencing certain health issues were taken by paramedics to emergency rooms specializing in that field whether that emergency room was busy or not. This resulted in certain emergency departments facing pressure over and above regular emergency department visits.
The redistribution of these patients to address this historical pattern began last October. As well, new technology was implemented in December to allow for more proactive planning and greater “real-time” monitoring of patient calls and volume. These two measures are working to improve patient care.
Offload delays were reduced by a total of 6,994 hours from December through March compared to the same period the year before. That works out to 3.36 full-time ambulances staffed forty hours a week that are now on the road dealing with patients instead of waiting in ER bays.
“This technology and these new protocols help put paramedics where they are most effective – on the road providing pre-hospital emergency care to the residents of Windsor-Essex,” said Essex-Windsor EMS Chief Bruce Krauter. “We are committed to building on this early success with our hospital partners and will continue working to reduce offload delays and enhance patient care.”
Windsor Regional Hospital CEO David Musyj said “the reduction in offload times is an example of what can be achieved when area health care providers work together making changes and using cutting-edge technology to be proactive. Erie Shores HealthCare has been an amazing partner in addressing some of these issues.”
“Every day is different in a hospital setting and this new tool lets our ambulance service respond to those changes in real time, maximizing resources and optimizing patient care,” said Musyj.
While the total number of calls is down for the first quarter of 2019, the number of patients being transported to Erie Shores HealthCare in Leamington has nearly doubled. This is the result of diversion protocols that recognize the regional nature of our health care system. This shift has helped fuel the decrease in offload times at all three area hospitals.
“The whole is greater than the parts when it comes to delivering quality health care to the residents of Windsor-Essex,” said Janice Dawson, CEO of Erie Shores HealthCare. “Working together like this promotes positive outcomes for patients no matter where they live. Feedback from patients that would not normally have come to Erie Shores HealthCare under previous EMS protocols has been very positive.”
Essex-Windsor EMS began working with call report vendor Interdev Technologies in January of 2018 to develop a real-time dashboard that allowed management to view data transferred directly from the communications centre. The tool reduces voice communication and facilitates expedient deployment decisions. Full optimization and use began in December of 2018.
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For more information, please contact:
Renée Trombley
Manager of Corporate Communications and Accessibility
The County of Essex
519-776-6441, ext. 1330
Or
Donald McArthur
Communications Officer
The County of Essex
519-776-6441, ext. 1337
dmcarthur@countyofessex.ca