ED Management – July 1, 2007
July 1, 2007
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ED physicians group ousted, sues — power struggle with CEO blamed
Haywood Emergency Physicians, which had managed the ED at Haywood Regional Medical Center in Clyde, NC, since 1991, was ousted by a unanimous vote of the hospital's board in late December 2006 and replaced by the corporate physicians staffing firm Phoenix Physicians following a heated contract dispute. -
What surveyors want to see for review of med orders
Most ED managers breathed a sigh of relief after The Joint Commission approved an interim action, effective Jan. 1, 2007, that changed the requirement for pharmacy review of ED medication orders [element of performance (EP) 1 for standard 4.10 of medication management]. -
Fever kit helps ED save $300,000 in three years
By creating inexpensive fever kits and providing them free of charge to parents of children between 3 months and 5 years of age who presented and were discharged, the ED at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas has saved approximately $300,000 since the initial pilot program began in July 2004. -
Discharge instructions help parents provide home care
The following are examples of fever discharge instructions provided to parents at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas: -
'Boarded' patients prefer halls on inpatient floors
Harried ED managers who are trying their best to get patients upstairs apparently have some strong allies in this battle: The patients themselves. -
Social workers cut nonemergent visits 45%
By locating a social worker in a hospital ED to help members overcome barriers to primary care, Horizon NJ Health, a West Trenton, NJ-based managed care organization, was able to decrease ED visits by 45% among its members who had a face-to-face conversation with the social worker. -
Guest Column: Discharging the homeless — Crisis in 'La-La Land'
An adult patient arrives at the ED in the middle of the night with a presenting complaint of head trauma of unknown origin, and associated pain and dizziness.