UL Hospitals Group announces plan to manage winter demand on ED

UL Hospitals Group has developed a comprehensive plan to manage the expected increase in presentations at the Emergency Department at UHL over the coming months.

The Winter Resilience Plan is a 'whole-system' approach to ensuring ED overcrowding is minimised as much as possible during what is traditionally the busiest time of year in our acute hospitals. Safe and effective care delivery is at the heart of the plan, which has been developed by UL Hospitals Group in close conjunction with our colleagues in the Mid-West Community Healthcare Organisation.
After sharing details of the plan with TDs and councillors from the region last Friday, UL Hospitals Group CEO Colette Cowan said: 'We have already experienced an unusually busy summer at UHL, with an increase of 10% in emergency presentations. This has been aggravated by the temporary closure of a 24-bedded ward at UHL to allow for a refurbishment and to comply with HIQA standards.
'Our winter resilience plan will address the challenges we have faced recently on both the demand and the capacity fronts – and much more besides. The plan – which covers October to March – is about better proofing our organisation against the surges in activity we typically see over the winter period,' she said.
'Preparedness is key and the plan sets out a defined set of actions to be taken by all staff according to a colour-coded alert and escalation system. It provides a clear understanding for our staff of what to do in every department and service area. It goes further than simply consolidating existing plans and includes a number of important initiatives around bed capacity, staffing, better co-ordination with our Model 2 hospitals and with our community colleagues; and specific measures to cope with the increasing number of frail, elderly patients we need to care for at this time of year.
'Importantly, it presents demand on the ED as a whole-system challenge, the solutions to which are found not only in the emergency department but in every ward in every hospital in the group; in community hospitals and nursing homes; and in general practice.
'Indeed, ordinary people themselves can contribute in different ways, whether that is by ensuring they have had the flu vaccination or by checking on elderly relatives and neighbours to see if they are winter ready. People are also reminded to visit the ED at UHL only when necessary and visit their GP or Shannondoc in the first instance. More than one in three emergency presentations in this region are now made at our local injury units (LIUs) in Ennis, Nenagh and St John's hospitals. This is a success we are keen to build on and we would urge patients to continue to use the LIUs, where appropriate, this winter to help the ED at UHL cope with peaks in demand,' Ms Cowan said.
Key measures in the UL Hospitals Winter Resilience Plan include:
*The opening of 24 new inpatient beds in November to coincide with the opening of the Leben Building, the first phase of which will care for stroke/neurology and adult CF patients
*The opening of a 24-bedded isolation ward in November following refurbishment.
*The recruitment of 124 extra personnel to staff the extra beds across all of the areas including stroke, CF, backfill of 4C, and additional beds in 4C
*The development of a five-day specialty geriatric ward at St John's Hospital
*The reservation of 20 AMU/MAU slots across the group daily for the over-75s
*The establishment of rapid access clinics, whereby a number of slots at consultant outpatient clinics will be reserved for GPs to refer patients
*The opening of a second emergency theatre at weekends at UHL
*Appointment of a second community discharge nurse at UHL
*Prioritising diagnostics for inpatients to facilitate earlier discharge
 
'We know from experience that the winter brings with it particular challenges for an acute hospital and we acknowledge that we will face many difficulties over the coming months to enable us to deliver timely care to our patients in an appropriate setting.   However, the Winter Resilience Plan will enable us to respond to these challenges in a cohesive and consistent way, ensuring that patient care remains central to all our actions,' Ms Cowan said.