The leadership team at Merit Health River Region Hospital had been frustrated with the performance of its emergency department (ED) and the lack of effectiveness of its existing staffing firm to turn things around. Metrics were poor, more than half of the physician shifts were covered by locums, and teamwork was lacking. In an effort to improve performance across the system, Merit Health partnered with American Physician Partners (APP) to serve as the ED management provider for all 6 of its facilities.

APP’s first step in the turnaround process was to recruit a full-time, permanent team of dedicated providers for the hospital. Next, they formed a multi-disciplinary performance improvement team that met at least monthly to identify steps to improve metrics and overall performance. This team included the CEO, CNO, ED nursing leader, and advanced practice clinician (APC) leader from the hospital as well as the regional VP, regional medical director, ED medical director, and APC director from APP. One of the key initiatives to have a meaningful impact on ED performance was the implementation of APP’s Provider In Triage (PIT) process to reduce turnaround times and enhance the patient experience. Through teamwork, innovation, and an unwavering focus on patient-centric metrics, the team enjoyed significant and sustainable improvements—not just in the ED, but for the entire hospital—within just the first 6 months, and metrics continue to improve.