Incidence and cost of potentially avoidable emergency department visits for urolithiasis.

Objectives: Urolithiasis represents a leading cause of emergency department (ED) presentation nationally, affecting approximately 10% of Americans. However, most patients require neither hospital admission nor surgical intervention. This study investigates patient and facility factors associated with potentially avoidable ED visits and their economic consequences.

Improving Staff Workflow in Urology Procedure Clinic Using the Model for Improvement.

Objective: To maximize procedure volume and minimize workflow inefficiency in our urological procedure clinic, we hypothesized that for staff (nurses/medical assistants) and patient teams, team workflow duration (TWD) (the time required to complete team duties for a single appointment) could be reduced by 50% with a targeted workflow intervention developed using the Model for Improvement and Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles. Workflow inefficiency leads to wasted time and workplace dissatisfaction, resulting in lost revenue due to low procedure volume and high staff turnover.

Methods: A baseline time study was performed to measure TWD for clinical teams, including the front desk, physician, staff, and patient teams.