Doctor of Nursing Practice Program

• Committee Chair Name & Credentials:
  K. Melissa Smith, DNP, ANP-C, CHFN
 

 

DNP Project Abstract

Improving Emergency Department Admissions with Utilization Management

Purpose
Increase Emergency Department (ED) admitting practitioner knowledge of Utilization Management (UM) role and function during the hospital admission process by creating an educational module guided by emergency medicine practitioner learning theory to improve the use of the “Intend to Admit” button, and initiation of UM review process.

Methods
The Plan-Do-Study-Act framework for UM/ED Admissions module development, delivery, and data analysis was utilized to evaluate the impact of the module teaching to 126 ED practitioners at Vanderbilt University Medical Center ED.

Results
The ED/UM Admission module survey was delivered to 126 full-time ED admitting practitioners and identified 22.1% (17) had no prior knowledge of UM and 12.5% (10) had no previous knowledge of the “Intend to Admit” button. The UM/ED Education tool did increase the use of the “Intend to Admit” button for UM review from 48% (n=1368, July 2022) of all admissions to a weekly average high of 61% (331) during Week 5.

Implications for Practice
An education module survey is an effective tool for tracking participant completion, and an effective teaching tool for emergency practitioner learning styles and may be more beneficial when part of mandatory annual training. Visual reminders and in-person training may further support the emergency learning style.