CEP Unveils Evolutionary Approach to Easing Emergency Department Delays.

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers

OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 4, 2003

California Emergency Physicians (CEP) Medical Group introduces its Rapid Medical Evaluation (RME) Program, a proprietary innovation that is changing how emergency patients are cared for in California. The program has resulted in a significant decrease in patient wait times -- pilot sites participating in the program have experienced a decrease in time to medical provider up to 75 percent.

The RME Program provides Emergency Departments with a more fluid treatment process and better allows for change based on demand and resource availability to ensure care is provided as quickly as possible. Under the RME Program, patients are placed immediately in an Emergency Department bed when available and examined by a medical provider, such as a physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner. When volume increases and resources are exhausted, the program allows medical providers to perform a RME at the Triage station as soon as patients enter the Emergency Department -- this method replaces the previous nursing triage assessment. The RME Program allows the treatment process to begin immediately and includes an initial assessment, ordering of labs and X-rays, and in some cases, rapid discharge -- all without utilizing a bed in the ED.

The concept of a RME Program fundamentally changes the way Emergency Departments have operated in the past. On a national scale, the results have an important impact on emergency medicine services as JCAHO announced that hospitals must address ED overcrowding as a requirement for accreditation.

"At many CEP-contracted Emergency Departments that are utilizing the Rapid Medical Evaluation Program, patients are being treated as soon as they enter the Emergency Department. Our findings reveal that the program has resulted in more satisfied patients, a better work environment for medical providers, decreased 'left without being seen' and ambulance diversion as well as less duplication of work and thus less wasted nursing time. As patient volumes and physician/nurse workload continue to increase in every Emergency Department, it's crucial that we act now to streamline processes to achieve optimal performance," said Prentice Tom, M.D., CEP's chief medical officer.

"By providing our contracted Emergency Departments with a defined portfolio of tools and resources, we've given sites an opportunity to create success. The Rapid Medical Evaluation Program has proved beneficial at several pilot sites and we look forward to expanding the program throughout the 50 Emergency Departments staffed by CEP," said Wesley A. Curry, M.D., FACEP, president of CEP. "With the flu season upon us and implementation of nurse ratio regulations, our hospital clients who have implemented the RME Program have experienced a more efficient patient flow process, improved nurse morale, and reduced pressures of nurse recruitment and retention. In addition, some hospitals have been able to reduce or delay expansion because of decreased Emergency Department overcrowding."

CEP was founded in 1975 and is the leading provider of physician staffing, management, and consulting services for Emergency Departments and Ambulatory Care Practices in California. CEP is the largest democratic physician group in the country dedicated to the independent practice of emergency medicine. To date, CEP includes more than 900 providers, providing emergency care to more than two million patients each year. For more information on CEP, visit their website at www.cep.com.