Clinical Systems Testing in the New Emergency Department

Facilitated by Dr. Melissa Fussell and the Carilion Simulation team, members from multiple disciplines descended into the new ED space this week to test how we plan to provide excellent care to our patients in this beautiful and expansive new environment. Volunteers included staff from Trauma, EM, ED Nursing, X-Ray, CT, Pharmacy, Respiratory Therapy, Patient Reps, Materials Mgmt., Security, E&OD, Clinical Admins, MEDCOM, Patient Access, Chaplaincy, Process Improvement and Human Factors. Each day, we ran scenarios in each of the new trauma bays with plastic patients to identify potential risks that we can plan to manage and mitigate before the first member of our community sets foot in the new space for care. After each run, the entire group debriefed about what they experienced and collectively identified opportunities(Latent Safety Threats) for improvement in process, communication and physical arrangement of the bays. This effort culminated today with a concurrent triple trauma scenario, with dispositions to the OR, CT and IR. I am happy to report that all our simulated patients are on the path to a full recovery.

This was an extraordinary feat to pull together, and is an wonderful example of how we are proactively ensuring we can provide excellent care for our patients. We will continue running simulations throughout the month of March.

A very special thanks to all those who participated. (50+ unique volunteers!).