A patient transfer center can play a pivotal role in optimizing patient flow and enhancing outcomes across your health system. However, implementing such a system requires careful planning, strategic execution, and an emphasis on change management. This article outlines the top strategies healthcare leaders can employ to successfully integrate a patient transfer center, ensuring the transition is smooth and the benefits are maximized.
Embrace Change Management
Change is often met with resistance, especially in complex environments like health care. To integrate a patient transfer center effectively, it’s essential to have a robust change management strategy. Begin by engaging key stakeholders early in the process. This includes not only senior leadership but also providers and frontline staff who will be directly affected by the new system. To support the change management process:
- Leverage transparent communication: Regularly communicate the vision, goals, and benefits of the patient transfer center to all levels of the organization. Transparency is key to minimizing resistance.
- Undergo training and education: Provide comprehensive training programs to ensure that staff members understand how the new system works and how it will benefit both them and the patients. Tailor education to different roles to address specific concerns and responsibilities.
- Focus on empowerment: Empower your staff by involving them in the planning and implementation phases. When team members feel they have a voice in the process, they are more likely to embrace the changes.
Let Data Guide Your Strategy
In managing patient access, data is a powerful tool for driving decision-making and optimizing processes. A patient transfer center can generate a wealth of data that, when analyzed correctly, can significantly enhance your health system’s efficiency and effectiveness.
Start by establishing baseline metrics before implementing the patient transfer center. This could include speed to accept, request to bed and declinations. These benchmarks will help you measure the impact of the new system.
Next, work with your vendor to utilize data to monitor the performance of the transfer center. This allows for quick adjustments and continuous improvement. For example, if data shows a bottleneck in patient transfers, you can address it immediately.
Finally, leverage analytics to forecast patient demand and optimize resource allocation. This can help in load leveling and mitigating network stress, ensuring that patients receive the right care at the right time without overwhelming any single facility.
Choose a patient transfer center provider who will work with you as a partner in creating processes that align with the goals of your organization. For example, Mercy Health – Toledo partnered with Conduit to expedite patient transfers, optimize inpatient capacity through load-leveling, and reduce the administrative burden on healthcare staff. Conduit’s team, equipped with organizational capacity insights, made strategic decisions on patient placements based on real-time data and facility services. Simultaneously, early engagement with transport vendors allowed immediate action on transfer requests, saving valuable time. The partnership resulted in a decrease in patient transfer times by an average of 34% and an increase of direct admissions to metro hospitals by 54% per week.
Share Positive Results to Build Momentum
One of the most effective ways to ensure the success of a patient transfer center is to share its positive impacts with the entire organization. When staff and stakeholders see the tangible benefits, they are more likely to support and champion the system. This can be executed by:
- Sharing success stories where the patient transfer center improved patient outcomes or operational efficiency. Highlight specific cases where patients received timely and appropriate care due to the new system.
- Celebrating milestones and achievements related to the transfer center. This could be through internal newsletters, staff meetings, or even award ceremonies. Recognizing the hard work of your team will boost morale and reinforce the value of the new system.
Focus on Patient-Centered Care: Right Care, Right Time
At the heart of any health care system is the patient. A patient transfer center should be designed with the primary goal of ensuring that patients receive the right care at the right time, regardless of where they enter the system.
The transfer center should act as a hub for coordinating access for acute care across the entire health system. This ensures that patients are transferred to the facility that can best meet their needs, reducing delays in care and improving patient experience.
Identify and Report on Key Performance Indicators
A patient transfer center doesn’t just benefit individual patients—it has the potential to enhance the entire health system’s operations. Outsourcing a patient transfer center has many advantages including distributing patient load across the network more efficiently, mitigating network leakage, improving ED boarding times, and promoting a positive reputation within the community and other systems
Identify and regularly report on your key performance indications (KPIs) such as reduced ED boarding times, improved patient satisfaction scores, and more efficient load leveling. Use visual aids like charts and graphs to make the data more accessible and impactful.
Select The Right Partner
To support you in a successful integration of a patient transfer center, do your due diligence and select the right partner. Your transfer center partner should have industry experience enabling you to leverage best practices during your onboarding. They also should be willing to serve as an extension of your team; working with you to deliver on your goals.
