Cardiology Hospitalist Program Having Positive Impact

August 16, 2018
It’s been almost a year since Lawrence General launched its Cardiology Hospitalist Program. By providing dedicated cardiology coverage every day, the goal of the program is to expedite patient consultations, reduce the turnaround time on inpatient cardiac test interpretations, and improve the overall patient experience.
 
So far, the results have been very positive. Lawrence General has reduced the length of stay for patients under observation for cardiac issues from 33 hours to 15 hours. This indicates that cardiac testing is being completed and read more quickly. In addition, the hospital has reduced the number of inpatient stress tests by 33 percent in the first seven months of the program. These tests are often not necessary when there is a cardiologist on site to thoughtfully evaluate the need for the test.

This investment in more efficient service to our cardiac patients will influence their experience of care here at Lawrence General, cutting the time spent waiting in half. Improving the patient progression in cardiology also means increased capacity to help more patients, as we medically clear observation patients more quickly or move them into treatment. This approach is also more efficient for our cardiologists, who can plan to see their scheduled office patients without interruption of on-call demands. Congratulations to all on a successful change process!