Many mental health organisations still keep waiting lists and schedules for admissions in lists and Excel documents. Often the processes run pretty smoothly, because one person knows everything... But this obviously carries risks. To stay in control of the entire admission process, organisations are increasingly looking at digital solutions linked to the EHR.
In addition to optimised digital processes improving the understanding of the admission process for the organisation as a whole and making life easier for planners, it also potentially improves the patient experience - and that is ultimately what it's all about! In this article, we highlight some of the ways in which digitalisation of the admission process can contribute to the patient experience.
That it is often difficult to find an available bed for every patient in the foreseeable future is well known. If there is no central, real-time overview of available beds, capacity cannot be optimally utilised and patients will sometimes be on the waiting list longer than necessary.
When all stakeholders (planners, care providers) have insight into one central overview of available and occupied beds, there is better insight into throughput and outflow. This not only ensures optimal utilisation of available beds, but also allows for more accurate forecasts.
In addition, admission is an intensive treatment, used only when outpatient treatment does not help - if possible, admissions are avoided. Sometimes, timely triage (as part of the optimised admission process) may reveal that there are other options for treating the patient. Again, this reduces the number of people on the waiting list and speeds up the process for those who do need admission.
Voluntary or forced inpatient admission is obviously drastic. Good and timely communication about the process can remove at least some of the anxiety in that area. When more accurate estimates of the waiting time can be made, the communication processes can also better reflect this. The more clarity that can be created, the better and more timely the communication towards the patient and any family caregivers.
By the way, this applies not only to the waiting time until admission, but also to the time of discharge. Understanding the complete admission process means faster clarity for all parties.
In a previous article, we already touched upon the risks associated with "paper" processes (or loose Excel documents), including those related to ensuring privacy. That the loss of information also does not benefit the patient experience is perhaps very obvious - yet it happens regularly. When there is shadow record creation in Excel and/or Word and information may vanish during (service) transfers, for example, there is a greater chance of mistakes being made during treatment. In addition, it is obviously very annoying if a patient has to answer the same questions several times, simply because the answers are not stored centrally.
Ultimately, proper digitalisation of the admission process also increases patient safety - in a broad sense.
For example, leave during an admission period is easier to track in a digital process - many mental health-organisations run into the problem that due to poor record keeping too much leave is granted for the patient's severity of stay. This, too, poses risks.
Ultimately, it is important that those patients who would be helped by an inpatient stay be treated as timely and appropriate can be helped as possible. By properly estimating and recording urgency and capacity, it is easier to prioritize by urgency and higher urgency patients can be helped sooner.
Do you think there are gains to be made within your organisation in terms of the patient experience upon admission? Our Admission24 module supports with the logistical and content-related handling of admissions. You work from your own EHR.
Feel free to contact us, we are happy to tell you more.