Amid respiratory virus treat, Horizon plans ER changes to cut wait times

Horizon Health Network's planning ER changes to cope with staff shortages and wait times and says the solutions could mitigate some of the influx of patients due to RSV, infections, the flu and COVID-19. The changes centre around patient flow at the larger ERs and could include having a physician stationed at the triage station or pulling people into a different section of the ER specifically designated for faster turnarounds. New types of staff will be deployed to assist RNs and other staff who are in short supply and working overtime. Horizon's clinical lead of emergency services says what would normally be a 10-hour wait could be cut in half or even better, adding that Horizon’s been using LPNs and personal care workers to supplement its teams for many weeks with positive results.
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