The department, which is under new clinical and administrative leadership, determined that the first step in this journey was a full assessment of the key performance metrics related to its operations and clinical outcomes. Leadership wanted to answer simple
questions, while keeping track of clinical outcomes and patient safety:
- Are we starting our first cases on time?
- How are our volumes trending?
- What is our procedural suite utilization rate?
In answering these questions, the first challenge encountered was accessing data in disparate clinical systems, a hindrance to understanding performance. To provide this holistic operational overview the IR team partnered with HI-IQ, a software platform for tracking the key metrics specific to the unique clinical and operational workflows of IR departments. The downside has been duplicative documentation in both primary record systems and HI-IQ, as well as some required manual data manipulation, limiting true real-time feedback. However, the benefits have outweighed the effort, and future integration and enhancement of systems will hopefully reduce this duplication burden going forward.
The results were an improved 360-degree view of ongoing operations captured within a single system. From there reporting could be generated providing a clear feedback loop to process owners of performance metrics driven by their actions. This increased awareness, along with minor improvements associated with the data led to a 23% increase in throughput and a 10% increase in first case on time starts.
With a focus on continuing to improve operational performance and patient safety, the team at Memorial Hermann will continue to refine how it utilizes performance data to enhance how process owners receive accurate and timely input to drive improved performance.
Disclaimer: Please note that SIR is not responsible for any products or services offered by ConexSys, including HI-IQ. Nor is SIR responsible for any guarantees offered by ConexSys. Any concerns or questions about HI-IQ should be directed to ConexSys at (866) 604-4447.
