Royal Bournemouth Hospital unveiled the U.K.'s first hospital "bouncer" nurses to redirect non-urgent patients away from ERs - and the hospital says the initiative reduced waiting times dramatically. The "gatekeeper" nursing staffers are stationed at the front door before receptionists to assess patients when they arrive, then decide if they’re in genuine need of urgent care. If not, the nurses redirect the patients to their pharmacies or GP. The concept is known as clinical streaming and it operates under the strict policy that no one is sent home, only redirected to other professionals. The initiative aims to cut wait times in the emergency department and is also meant to relieves pressure on ER receptionists to allow them to focus on urgent cases.
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