UnityPoint - Meriter, Madison
Reports
2024
Poster Fair Highlights Unit-Specific Quality Improvement Efforts
Annually, clinical units throughout UnityPoint Health – Meriter are invited to present visual reports showcasing their quality improvement projects or best practices. These posters are compiled into a virtual poster fair accessible via Meriter’s intranet for providers and team members. Additionally, they are shared with partner providers and team members at UW Health to foster cross-organizational commitment to quality and shared values.
The informational posters cover an array of quality improvement topics, ranging from the implementation of team retreats to promote staff engagement in high-risk perinatal care to the integration of additional screenings to reduce readmission rates, to proactive toileting strategies to prevent falls. Each poster provides background information, outlines goals or aims, details the methods employed, and presents the results of the improvement efforts. The virtual poster fair serves as an invaluable educational opportunity, spotlighting the important contributions of team members in delivering safe and effective care to the community.
The informational posters cover an array of quality improvement topics, ranging from the implementation of team retreats to promote staff engagement in high-risk perinatal care to the integration of additional screenings to reduce readmission rates, to proactive toileting strategies to prevent falls. Each poster provides background information, outlines goals or aims, details the methods employed, and presents the results of the improvement efforts. The virtual poster fair serves as an invaluable educational opportunity, spotlighting the important contributions of team members in delivering safe and effective care to the community.
Unique Hospital Unit Provides Seamless Care Faster and Reduces Holds in Area Emergency Departments
Almost a year ago, UnityPoint Health – Meriter piloted a unique admission unit, designed to streamline patient flow from emergency departments to inpatient units.
Adapted from international best practices, UnityPoint Health – Meriter's admission unit stands out for its location within the main hospital rather than within the emergency department itself. Staffed by a dedicated team of nurses and providers specializing in admission decisions, this unit expedites patient care initiation, thereby reducing overall length of stay and potentially preventing inpatient admissions.
The unit accommodates four to eight adult patients at a time, with the goal to route half of all daily hospital admissions through this unit. Eligible patients are those aged 18 and above, with general medical concerns (excluding pediatric and OB patients).
Since its inception in July 2023, the unit has served over 2,700 patients. Approximately five patients per week have avoided full hospital admission thanks to the care provided within the unit. Patients admitted through the admission unit experience a shorter length of stay, averaging 4.1 days compared to 4.97 days on other units. Nearly half of all admission unit patients spend fewer than six hours in the unit. Moreover, the median boarding time from Meriter's emergency department to the admission unit remains lower than that to all other inpatient units at the hospital.
The unit, which collaborates with the UW Health Access Center, serves Meriter's emergency department and clinics as well as UW Health’s University Hospital, East Madison Hospital, and other nearby emergency departments.
Adapted from international best practices, UnityPoint Health – Meriter's admission unit stands out for its location within the main hospital rather than within the emergency department itself. Staffed by a dedicated team of nurses and providers specializing in admission decisions, this unit expedites patient care initiation, thereby reducing overall length of stay and potentially preventing inpatient admissions.
The unit accommodates four to eight adult patients at a time, with the goal to route half of all daily hospital admissions through this unit. Eligible patients are those aged 18 and above, with general medical concerns (excluding pediatric and OB patients).
Since its inception in July 2023, the unit has served over 2,700 patients. Approximately five patients per week have avoided full hospital admission thanks to the care provided within the unit. Patients admitted through the admission unit experience a shorter length of stay, averaging 4.1 days compared to 4.97 days on other units. Nearly half of all admission unit patients spend fewer than six hours in the unit. Moreover, the median boarding time from Meriter's emergency department to the admission unit remains lower than that to all other inpatient units at the hospital.
The unit, which collaborates with the UW Health Access Center, serves Meriter's emergency department and clinics as well as UW Health’s University Hospital, East Madison Hospital, and other nearby emergency departments.
