As we all know ED has been getting increasingly crowded over the last few years. Although patient numbers have only shown a moderate increase approx 7% a year. The time patients are having to spend in ED has more than doubled.
The combined time patients spent in each ED was 1.5 years in January 2021 alone. Fast forward to December 2024 and it is 4.25 years.
Over this period space and staffing have not increased at this pace. This overcrowding impacts patient experience and care, and hinders you providing the care you want to give.
The Aim: of this trial is to decongest the Emergency Department by caring for Urgent (not emergent) patients in a dedicated SDEC. Allowing us to improve the care of both groups.
The selection and flow of patients will be from the ED only after an initial senior RAT. Patients may go either as:
- Trusted Referrer Pathway: If ALL of following criteria can be streamed up after RAT
- NEWS2: 0-2
- MTS Cat 3/4
- No Emergent Issue
- Not suitable for : Minors/UCH/LCD/Current SDEC
- Senior-Senior referral: Those patients that fall outside the above pathway who both ED and UEC seniors agree could be appropriately managed on UEC-SDEC
This trail is being run as rapid PDSA’s. That means your feedback is essential so we can see what is going well or not and improve/update pathways through out the trial. With the plan that by April the pathway will be optimised.
