CSI Summary
Available only to registered AACN.org users.
CSI Project
Overlake Medical Center and Clinics (Bellevue, Washington)
CSI Summary
Available only to registered AACN.org users.
CSI Presentation
Available only to registered AACN.org users.
CSI Toolkit
Available only to users with a paid AACN membership.
Patient experience in the Emergency Department
Hospital UnitEmergency Department
CSI Participants
Arnold Andres, BSN, RN
Project Goals/Objectives
Project Outcomes
Project Overview
Overlake Medical Center and Clinics experienced 5.5% population growth from 2013 to 2016 and has continued to steadily grow. The Emergency Department average daily census increased 6.5% from 2019 to 2020 year-to-date. Our CSI team discovered inconsistent triage knowledge among the nurses, out-of-date triage education material and a historical increase in the number of patients who left without being seen (LWBS) during our peak months of October through January.
After updating triage education, providing in-person training, creating reliable resources and revising several triage policies, we have seen a huge increase in consistency among triaging nurses. Staff reported increased comfort with, and understanding and application of the Emergency Severity Index (ESI) levels. We also saw a 12% decrease in annual LWBS rates. The goal is to present an in-person triage class and/or refresher course annually for all staff, new or old.
Permission to Reuse Materials
The materials associated with this AACN Clinical Scene Investigator (CSI) Academy project are the property of the participating hospital noted above, not AACN. Requests to use content contained in the CSI team’s summary, presentation or toolkit should be directed to the hospital. We suggest reaching out to the hospital’s Communications, Marketing or Nursing Education department for assistance.
Disclaimer
The AACN CSI Academy program supports change projects based on quality improvement methods. Although CSI teams seek to ensure linkage between their project and clinical/fiscal outcomes, data cannot be solely attributed to the project and are estimations of impact.