SPOTLIGHT

Rapid Medical Evaluation®

Vituity’s proprietary Rapid Medical Evaluation^® (RME) program reengineers patient flow in the emergency department and results in increased patient satisfaction and increased capacity for departments of all sizes. Originally developed in 2002, RME^® is now the standard of care in emergency departments across the country.

How Rapid Medical Evaluation^® Works

The RME^® Program fundamentally changes the way patients are cared for in the emergency department. Under RME^®, the treatment process is fluid and based on demand and resource availability to ensure that care is provided as quickly as possible. Using a parallel processing approach, treatment begins immediately and includes the initial assessment, the ordering of labs and x-rays, and in some cases, rapid discharge without utilizing a bed in the emergency department.

Developed by local leaders at a Vituity practice site, our process improvement team codified best practices and rolled out collaborative training programs across the organization. As new practices join Vituity, RME^® has a transformative impact on patient satisfaction, department efficiency, and team engagement.

1. Time to Provider

Time to Provider (TTP) is the single factor most influencing patient satisfaction. Thanks to RME^® Vituity’s average time to provider across all emergency department locations nationwide is less than 15 minutes. Because of the rapid time to provider, left without being seen (LWBS) rates plummet positively impacting hospital revenue.

2. Patient Satisfaction

Lower patient wait times translate into higher patient satisfaction levels. Vituity client hospitals frequently score in the upper percentiles (or at the very top) in patient satisfaction. Implementation of RME^® has rapidly improved many hospitals’ reputation on the community.

3. Increased ED Capacity

Using the RME^® model increases the real capacity of an emergency department by using treatment space more efficiently. This increases overall capacity and decreases the frequency of ambulance diversion. In effect, RME^® is an immediate expansion of the emergency department with minimal physical improvements, resulting in savings in future hospital construction costs.

4. Improved Nurse Retention

RME^® is a team-based approach that enables nurses to focus on caring for patients more effectively and efficiently. The process improvements and culture shift brought by this transformation lead to a highly engaged clinical team and high nursing satisfaction.

RME in Action

The Innovation Inspired by RME^®

While RME^® is a powerful demonstration of Vituity’s commitment to innovation, the transformation of the emergency department continues. Hear more from Theo Koury, MD, Vituity President, on how RME has helped to broaden the way we think about patient care

Partnering to improve patient lives

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Rapid Medical Evaluation®

How Rapid Medical Evaluation® Works

Partnering to improve patient lives

How Rapid Medical Evaluation^® Works