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Case Study:
How Catalyst Makes Tough Decisions Easier
The Problems
The medical center is a
medium-sized, full-service, acute care facility that had been doing very well
financially for many years. With the reimbursement landscape changing, a new
Vice President of Patient Care was confronted with a number of fiscal and
systems problems that needed to be solved.
The Process
The hospital needed a new
patient classification system and a valid way to assess workload, staff
utilization, and productivity. Catalyst Systems was selected because it was the
only company that offered both a patient classification system and an objective
study methodology to assess direct patient care workload and staff utilization
patterns. An in-house project coordinator worked closely with the Catalyst
consulting team and was trained to implement all aspects of EVALISYS® PCS Plus
(PCS and Study).
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The EVALISYS PCS was
implemented throughout the medical-surgical and critical care units
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A new inter-rater reliability
monitoring process was established
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Flexible staffing matrices were
developed for each unit based on budget and baseline acuity data
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The EVALISYS Patient
Classification/Staff Activity Study®, was conducted on several units to
obtain baseline productivity data that was valid and reliable
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The in-house PCS coordinator
was taught how to replicate the Study methodology for future use
The Outcomes
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The EVALISYS PCS was
successfully implemented and strongly supported by the RN staff because of its
simplicity and ease of use
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Staff had confidence in the
flexible new method of staffing by acuity
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On the Study units, a number of
opportunities were identified to improve efficiency, streamline systems, shift
staff responsibilities, improve productivity, and save money:
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The cost of
licensed staff performing non-clinical activities was $280,000 per year on each
unit |
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The cost of
charting time on each unit was $550,000 per year |
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Perceptions of
staffing adequacy were lower than Catalyst’s benchmark data on units where
direct care time was low |
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Based on Study results, changes
were made to improve efficiency, better utilize personnel, and reduce costs
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To validate the effectiveness
of these changes, the two medical-surgical units were restudied a year later,
with the following sample results:
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Licensed staff
non-clinical activity was reduced by one-half, saving $140,000 per unit per
year |
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Licensed staff
charting time was reduced by one-third, saving $182,000 per unit per year |
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Shift report was
streamlined, saving $58,000 on each unit each year |
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Perceptions of
staffing adequacy were higher than before the changes were made |
Based on the organization-wide
changes highlighted by the EVALISYS PCS Plus Study process, a total cost
reduction of $4,000,000 was achieved in one year. The hospital
continued to refine its operations over the years through subsequent restudies
of various units, adding exponentially to the accrued savings. Thanks to
Catalyst, this hospital has been able to maintain highly efficient systems and
staff productivity, keep patient satisfaction levels high, and achieve a return
on investment of 13:1.
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