The average 300-bed hospital can net $10 million a year in new revenue by adding just 12 turnovers per bed, a healthcare industry researcher told a record 200 U.S and Canadian attendees during a TeleTracking Technologies international client conference last week in Naples, Florida.
Other items which came to light during the conference:
- The average hospital can treat more than 3,500 additional patients by eliminating "˜lost bed days' through more efficient management of bed turns
- The impact of overcrowding on patient safety is becoming increasingly important to hospitals.
- Patient flow technology is playing a greater role in disaster planning
Keynote speaker Erik Johnson, managing director of The Advisory Board Company's IT Insights Division, showed detailed research on the potential return on investment delivered by improved patient flow.
Johnson said increasing the turnovers of each bed from 49.7 per year (the 40th percentile ranking nationally) to 61 per year (the 75th percentile) can increase revenue potential in a 300-bed hospital by over $10 million per year and allow 3,500 more patients to be treated without adding more beds.
While the financial impact is compelling, said TeleTracking CEO Anthony M. Sanzo, better patient flow more importantly means better patient care.
"Unless we are willing to make improved patient flow a top industry priority, we cannot say that we are committed to delivering the highest possible care to the communities we serve," Sanzo said.
That theme was apparent throughout the conference. Patient Flow industry expert Lisa Romano, RN, MSN, noted that attendees were more focused on the impact overcrowding has on patient safety than ever before.
"Never has it been more obvious that patient flow is a problem that must be fixed," said Romano, director of Avanti Patient Flow Services, a division of TeleTracking Technologies.
"The intensity that these patient flow stakeholders brought to the conference was truly inspiring. It was all about patient safety and how they could ensure open access to the healthcare system for their patient communities."
Romano also reviewed the role automated flow technology can play in complying with new guidelines from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospital Organizations (JCAHO). The guidelines call for "establishment of a command center, rapid system wide notification, and electronic documentation of an event," Romano said, all of which are made easier with advanced automation technology.
She said automation technology and process change are removing the "element of surprise" from the flow process because information about patient movement is available in real-time, giving nursing units, EDs and PACUs the ability to coordinate bed needs and resources.
The conference allows new and existing clients to exchange information and tips on enhancing patient flow.
"We are in the process of implementing TeleTracking's entire suite of patient flow solutions, so it was important for us to learn from others about the successes to build upon," said Beth Wells, Executive Director Patient Access and Information at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital, a part of West Tennessee Healthcare in Jackson, TN. "This was our first conference. We were able to learn a lot."
About TeleTracking
TeleTracking Technologies is the world leader in improving patient flow through computer automation. By providing prompts, alerts and real-time, actionable feedback to managers, its products have been proven to dramatically reduce patient wait times, decrease emergency department overcrowding and ambulance diversions so quality care can be delivered in a timely manner. The privately-held, Pittsburgh-based company has implemented over 1400 solutions at more than 700 acute care hospitals in the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom.
