Utilizing Health Analytics in Improving Emergency Room Performance.

Emergency room performance improvement has been a major concern for healthcare professionals and researchers. ER patients' length of stay and percentage of patients leaving without treatment are two of the most important indicators for performance monitoring and improvement. The main objective of this study is to utilize health analytics methods in identifying areas of deficiency, potential improvements and recommending effective solutions to enhance ER performance. ER data of 2014 were retrospectively retrieved in January 2015 and analyzed for significant variables affecting inpatient admission rates. Patient Acuity Level was the significant variable on which the recommendations were based. A Fast-Track area was redesigned and dedicated for managing lower acuity level patients; CTAS levels 4 and 5. The performance of the ER has been monitored for the first six months of 2015 and compared to 2014. 29% improvement was achieved on shortening the total ER LOS and 30% improvement was achieved on the percentage of patients leaving ER without treatment.