Christin Ray, Rebecca Gomez, Tia Llewellyn
Florida Hospital Orlando, USA
Title: Triad approach to effectively managing a large open observation department while decreasing costs and length of stay
Biography
Biography: Christin Ray, Rebecca Gomez, Tia Llewellyn
Abstract
Florida Hospital Orlando is a non-profit, quaternary care hospital that has 1,368
acute-care medical beds with an open, 81-bed observation unit. We accept most patients who are observation status, regardless of diagnosis or complexity
with minimal exclusion criteria. Managing and directing care effectively in an open observation department model is vital to successfully decreasing costs, decreasing length of stay, and improving patient outcomes. The triad leadership
approach to the observation care model has been found to create an environment of ownership, drives throughput, quality, and hospital capacity. As a team we coordinate care among a large number of hospitalists and specialists, as well as drive early identification of barriers and needs for a safe discharge. We will discuss our challenges and successes in building efficiency, ensuring quality of care, and driving down costs in this busy observation unit. Through consistent physician, nursing, and care management leadership, this unit has found ways to work more efficiently and improve outcomes for patients.
Objective 1: Discuss mechanisms to manage a high-volume unit with many
providers while maintaining high quality outcomes
Objective 2: Explore strategies to manage highly complex and challenging
observation patients without compromising quality of care
Objective 3: Develop consistent procedures to decrease length of stay in a large, open unit
Objective 4: Analyze strategies for becoming sustainably cost-effective to meet the expanding role of observation care