Standardization of Patient Transfers to Support Optimal Patient Care
COVID-19 has exacerbated already strained processes for transferring patients in and out of hospitals. Given a higher volume of patients needing specialized care coupled with ongoing staffing issues plaguing health systems nationwide, the lack of standardization for transferring patients has serious consequences.
Transfers are initiated when a hospital does not have the capacity or capability to treat a patient. However, without a standardized transfer process within and outside health systems and hospitals, the risk of moving a patient may outweigh the risk of caring for them at the originating hospital, even in a setting that lacks the ideal space, equipment or personnel.
Patient transfer troubles are not new, yet the pandemic has overwhelmed hospitals like never before. Patient volume poses increasingly significant transfer challenges and hospitals and health systems should prioritize standardization now before the next crisis hits.
Lessons from Conduit’s Pivot to Remote Work
Conduit Health has always been ahead of the curve on business needs. Looking back to January of 2020, we were operating as a traditional in-person health call center. We could see the value of having a remote work option and wanted to offer that to our associates, so we began working on policies, procedures, and developing technologies to make that goal a reality. We expected to have our first fully remote associate position in May of 2020.