New service to improve A&E experience
The Countess of Chester Hospital has introduced a new service in
the Emergency Department which they hope will reduce the number of
patients attending with non-urgent conditions.
From early December the Emergency Department introduced a
Clinical Streaming Service which consists of two senior nurses
assessing patients before they book in at reception. When
patients arrive they are now required to take a numbered ticket
from a machine and when their number is called out they will be
seen by a nurse in a separate designated assessment area.
If the Clinical Streaming Team feel that it is not necessary for
the patient to be seen, they may be advised to seek advice
elsewhere, such as their GP, a pharmacist, or other community
providers. However if the patient requires further assessment
by the Emergency Department, or the Urgent Care Unit, they will be
asked to book in at main reception as normal.
The Clinical Streaming Service - similar to the traditional
triage system - is being introduced as a three month pilot scheme
to see if it has an impact on the number of Emergency-type
attendances. This is a joint service provided by the Countess
and Partners4Health - an NHS body which provides community based
services from the Countess of Chester Hospital's Emergency
Department.
The Countess points to a dramatic increase in the number of
people attending the Emergency Department as the reason why this
new service needs to be introduced. As well as the general
increase in attendances, there is also a concern that many people
who come to A&E do so unnecessarily and could receive treatment
or advice elsewhere.
Jane Evans, Emergency Assessment Manager at the Countess, said:
"This year we have seen an 8% increase in the number of patients
attending A&E and it is extremely difficult for the department
to manage that additional patient flow. One of the biggest
challenges we face is the number of patients attending
inappropriately. The Emergency Department is there for
life-threatening accidents or emergencies but we are seeing a rapid
increase in the number of patients who simply do not need to be
there."
Jane added: "For example patients should not be attending
A&E with symptoms relating to Norovirus (diarrhoea and
vomiting). They should stay at home and contact their GP by phone
should the symptoms persist. Conditions such as Norovirus
spread through the community very quickly which is why we are
particularly keen at this time of year to advise patients not to
come to the Emergency Department inappropriately."
As well as hoping to reduce the number of inappropriate
attendances and ensure that the patient is directed to the right
service to meet their health care needs, the Countess is also keen
to use the Clinical Streaming Service as an opportunity to educate
and remind the public of what Emergency Departments should be used
for.
Jane concluded: "We don't like turning patients away and
patients should rest assured that if they need to be treated at the
Emergency Department or Urgent Care Unit, they will be. We do
not want to discourage patients who are seriously ill from
attending. However with Emergency Department attendances
increasing we are now at a stage where we have to ensure that the
patients who are in most need of our care get it first. We
would just like to ask the public to remember before they come to
the Emergency Department that we are here to provide care for
life-threatening and urgent conditions only."
The NHS Choose Well campaign was introduced to give patients
information on where best to seek treatment or advice if they are
unwell. For advice on receiving the correct treatment if you
are unwell visit:
http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/About/WhatIsNHSDirect/ChooseWell