tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40888796849245411942024-03-12T18:04:01.022-04:00Wait Time & Delayed CareA blog to help health care providers shorten wait times and improve patient flowUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger282125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-31470017889205128582008-11-03T08:00:00.001-05:002012-12-16T08:50:41.386-05:00The Effect of Too Many Doctor Days
Nothing creates more panic in the eyes of office managers than holes in the schedule. While doctors may complain about too much work and not enough time with a patient, the corollary is a lack of work.
I've watched this scenario play out several times now, and in our own practice it's not uncommon in the October/November period after we take on a new surgeon to have openings. An increase in Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-68780364264327333782008-10-21T08:51:00.000-04:002008-10-21T08:52:44.692-04:00Grand RoundsGrand Rounds is up with Pallimed. Included is an interview with Tony Clement, Canada's Minister of Health. Not an easy interview to get. Congrads to Sam Soloman.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-76361481499560847582008-10-16T07:00:00.001-04:002008-10-16T07:00:01.044-04:00FreshMD - Welcome to CanadaFreshMD has posted information given to refugees to Canada. It is as moving as it is simply. For instance,"In Canada, the law lets you practise your religion freely. You will not be asked or forced to change your religion. Freedom of religion is one of Canada’s basic freedoms. There are many Buddhist and Hindu temples, and Christian churches across Canada. In many cities, you can invite Hindu Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-53734345562250095242008-10-15T07:00:00.004-04:002008-10-15T17:59:11.722-04:00Gallup Employee Engagement EventYesterday I went to the “Gallup World Class Employee Engagement Seminar” to learn about best practices for employee engagement. You can read my previous post about the Gallup Q12 for a more detailed description of the tool.I could wax poetic about how an engaged employee will lead to lower turnover, better business unit performance and more engaged clients. But the entire concept was best summed Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-77474553944855784002008-10-14T07:00:00.000-04:002008-10-14T07:00:00.713-04:00Grand RoundsGrand Rounds is up today at Notes of an Anesthesioboist.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-19952691556929643442008-10-13T21:09:00.001-04:002008-10-13T21:10:53.521-04:00Check This OutHappy left a wonderfully glib post to a lawyer who visited his site. You know this one is going to end in a comment battle and possibly a lawsuit. I hope Happy knowswhat he's doing. I can hardly wait to see what happens in the comments section.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-11353345525250128762008-10-13T12:52:00.002-04:002008-10-13T13:03:04.264-04:00New Blog - Life in the Fast LaneI had a link from a new blog this week. Life in the Fast Lane is the writings of an ED physician from Australia. It is an eclectic mix of comedy, clinical cases and policy musings. 'SandnSurf' is a talented writer and has some skills with the technical side of blogging. My guess is this blog will become popular fast. Take a look at Life in the Fast Lane.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-60130151960162510182008-10-13T11:23:00.002-04:002008-10-13T11:34:44.604-04:00Poka-Yoke: Mistake Proofing an OfficePoka-Yoke is mistake proofing something. Anaesthesia is replete with these handy little tools. For instance the regulator for oxygen will only fit on an oxygen tank due to a pin-index system. On our anaesthesia machines the lowest percent of oxygen you can give is 30% otherwise the machine cuts off and the patient breathes room air.But PokaYoke extends far beyond life-threatening situations. I’veUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-81623281926487545952008-10-12T16:43:00.004-04:002008-10-12T17:30:37.889-04:00Dr. Val's Found a HomeFew medical bloggers have gained greater access or more popular acceptance among the mainstream media than Dr. Valerie Jones. Under the pseudonym 'Dr. Val' and as a member of the National Press Club Dr. Jones gained access to Washington insiders to provide insight into the politics and policies of US Health Care.Medical Blogging can be a difficult and dangerous business. Most are either Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-54072196818064730002008-10-11T07:00:00.000-04:002008-10-11T07:00:00.631-04:00Wait Times Earns an Honourable Mention at GruntDocThe accolades are few and far between in the world of blogging for health care efficiency so I'll take it where I can get it. Check out GruntDoc's caption contest (I placed 4th).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-63250695049837406402008-10-10T07:00:00.000-04:002008-10-10T07:00:00.588-04:00Online Six Sigma SupportIn any continuous improvement project I've found one of the major hurdles to be keeping all of the team members on the same page. Grouputer Solutions has come up with an online six sigma tool for everyone to use. Interesting tool -- the link is to the screen shots.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-64613686220227934832008-10-09T07:00:00.000-04:002008-10-09T07:00:01.023-04:00Canada Health CoalitionThe CHC published a report this week on the private clinics of Canada. They used anonymous telephone calls to multiple private or semi-private clinics throughout Canada to garner information as well as publicly available information. The study excluded clinics for purely non-necessary medical care (e.g. cosmo clinics) but did include mixed clinics. For instance, some are private but also underUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-18808356980364914832008-10-08T07:00:00.001-04:002008-10-08T07:00:00.699-04:00Parkland Hospital ER Death - More DetailsI have a soft spot for Parkland Memorial Hospital. It is a county hospital that sees all-comers regardless of their ability to pay or legal status. I also did an externship there and can say from first hand experience that the ER is amazingly busy and they see about as much trauma as any other hospital in the country.On September 19th a 58 year-old man died after waiting 19 hours in the emergencyUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-28018932340202486392008-10-07T08:00:00.000-04:002008-10-07T08:01:12.349-04:00Lean Nursing Practice Part IIIn Part I of this series I discussed what we have done in our clinic to ‘lean’ nursing practices. The last 4 items are smaller but shave minutes every day and decrease the change of having to repeat a task.Standardized Medical HistoryEach incoming patient has their medical history reviewed by the nurses. It is an EMR (electronic medical record) and the questions asked are developed in Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-6932345795106332972008-10-06T07:32:00.001-04:002008-10-06T07:34:23.380-04:00Lean Nursing Practices Part 1Everdream asked me to blog about Lean nursing practices.DisclaimerOur clinics are the equivalent of a ‘surgi-centre’ with both consultative appointments and procedures under anaesthetics. While I’ve been staff at hospitals for years, I have never supervised a floor lean initiative. I have supervised many clinic lean initiatives with our own 20+ nursing staff. For a framework of lean initiatives Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-33165210771137581952008-10-05T10:29:00.003-04:002008-10-05T10:37:29.324-04:00Proud to be a MemberI was accepted into the Healthcare Blogger Code of Ethics group this week. Follow the link in the bottom corner of the blog for more information.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-35564268525486358842008-10-05T07:00:00.001-04:002008-10-05T07:00:00.813-04:00Carbon Taxes and Health Care User FeesWhat do carbon taxes and health care user fees have in common? The Liberal Party of Canada has announced the Green Shift. A tax shift program where industry is taxed based on the amount of carbon it produces. The increased cost incentivizes' companies to find production solutions with a lower carbon footprint. The additional costs to the citizen are compensated through lower income taxes and Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-23791290704595028822008-10-04T09:45:00.005-04:002008-10-04T14:09:13.912-04:00Health Care Debate Overshadowed by the EconomyIn both the United States and Canada debates were held on Oct 2, 2008. I was torn as to whether to watch the Biden/Pallin debate or the Canadian Leaders debate. With the train wreck of an interview Pallin gave to Katie Couric wetting my appetite I wanted to watch the most public I.Q. test ever given.Alas, my civic duty overshadowed my voyeuristic streak and I watched 5 Canadian Leaders duke it Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-9040511138262340402008-10-03T07:00:00.001-04:002008-10-04T09:42:21.498-04:00In Search of Document Management SoftwareThis blog is a technical discussion for people that need to make IT decisions about document management. If you don't care about IT, have never heard of a database or don't need to mange documents I suggest you go have some fun at this web page or this one.If on the other hand, you've ever grappled with the problem of what to do with that electronic report or fax this blog's for you. Here's the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-19430276017306103202008-10-02T07:00:00.002-04:002008-10-02T07:00:01.815-04:00When Henry Ford Built a HospitalLike many other residents I went for interviews at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. I have only two memories. One was the border agent giving me the third degree because I was coming over for an interview and the other is the residents telling me about gunfire in the city on Halloween night. What was lost on me is that the hospital was built by Henry Ford with economy of motion in mind. I've Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-77075675977046173592008-10-01T07:00:00.000-04:002008-10-01T07:00:00.459-04:00Universal Health Care in MassachusettsI found a new blog (for me -- Ben's been blogging a while). Check out Ben Weger. He's an RN, paramedic and second year medical student and has a unique take on Universal Health Care in Massachusetts. My only question is; how much school debt are you carrying now Ben? That's a lot of careers for a 33 year old. For a good laugh check out his marital status under 'About'.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-70830310440988217462008-09-30T09:00:00.000-04:002008-09-30T09:00:02.337-04:00Grand RoundsGrand Rounds is up at Monash Medical Student this week.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-23060068915984935532008-09-30T07:00:00.004-04:002008-09-30T07:00:00.301-04:00PERT DiagramsPERT (Project Evaluation and Review Technique) is a method devloped for project management originally intended for the Polaris Submarine design and build. It's a graphical design (flow diagram) that forces the project designers to take into account minimum and maximum time frames and all of the different sub-projects that are required. The major benefits are that PERT joins all the activities in Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-46809403734676600712008-09-29T07:00:00.002-04:002008-09-29T20:01:43.324-04:00Dr. Val Guest AppearanceThanks to Dr. Val for making a guest appearance at Wait Times. Val is a former Candian now living south of the border. When you make it to Waterloo (or Toronto) I'll have some back-bacon on a bun and a pint of Canadian waiting for you. Update: Found Val over at http://other-things-amanzi.blogspot.com/ where she discusses medical errors swept under the rug. I once watch a Discovery channel show Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4088879684924541194.post-76160063306690210272008-09-28T07:00:00.007-04:002008-09-28T07:00:00.624-04:00Where's Dr.Val?I'll have a cartoon of Dr.Val's up later as a guest host but first let's have a little fun with her head :-)Can you find Dr. Val in the picture?From Wait Time & Delayed CarePhoto Courtesy of FreeFoto.comUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1