PROJECT AIMS TO REDUCE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT WAIT TIMES

A new project will examine ways to enhance the flow of patients to improve waiting times in emergency departments in Regina and Saskatoon hospitals.

"Ensuring our emergency rooms are operating in the most effective way possible to meet the needs of Saskatchewan residents is an important step in enhancing the overall quality of our province's health care," Health Minister John Nilson said. "It is also important to ensure the work environment for health providers is safe and supports the provision of appropriate care."

Over 175,000 people visited emergency departments in Regina and Saskatoon last year.

"In addition to improving wait times, this funding will allow us to conduct quality improvement exercises in the emergency department," Saskatoon Health Region Quality Services Director Candice Bryden said.

"This project is part of our ongoing commitment to improve the quality of services in our region," Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region Senior Vice-President, Patrick Dumelie said. "It will support our access improvement plan and is part of a broader initiative to enhance the emergency services we provide."

The Regina Qu'Appelle and Saskatoon health regions, in collaboration with the Health Quality Council, will use a decision-making tool called Operations Research to study how patients currently move through the emergency departments, from registration to discharge, to identify points that can cause an increase in wait times and strategies for improving efficiency.

"The great advantage of Operations Research is that we can use a computer model to test improvement ideas – drawn from emergency department staff and the medical literature – before actually applying them in the real world," Health Quality Council Operations Research specialist Keith Willoughby said. "We can use such models to answer many 'what if' questions. This will be the first major application of this improvement science in Saskatchewan, and will help build Operations Research capacity that can be applied to other areas of the health care system."

The Health Quality Council is an independent agency that measures and reports on quality of care in Saskatchewan, promotes improvement, and engages its partners in building a better health system.

Findings will be discussed with emergency department staff and managers to identify and implement the most promising approaches to improving the emergency department experience for patients and providers.

The review will cost approximately $217,000. Saskatchewan Health is providing funding through its $1-million Technical Efficiency Fund, established in 2004 as part of the $66 million incremental funding committed to the province during the 2004 First Ministers' Meeting.

-30-

For More Information, Contact:

Jocelyn Argue Health Regina Phone: (306) 787-4083	Leanne Nyirfa Saskatoon Regional Health Authority Saskatoon Phone: (306) 655-3386
Sheila Ragush Health Quality Council Saskatoon Phone: (306) 668-8810	Mark Torjusen Regina Qu'Appelle Regional Health Authority Regina Phone: (306) 766-5332