Dialysis/Apheresis Operational Excellence Task Force

New York-Presbyterian Hospital (NYP)works to deliver excellent and cost-effective care, while simultaneously facing numerous challenges due to increasingly strict reimbursement criteria, multiple state and federal regulations, as well as stiff market competition within an unstable economic climate. The Capstone team was engaged to develop recommendations to maximize operational efficiency in the NYP Weill Cornell Hemodialysis and Apheresis Unit. The unit faced operational challenges such as shared staff among locations, limited space, staffing mix, variable acuity/census, and inter-dependency upon several hospital departments. The team performed workflow analyses, comparable site visits, staff surveys, reviews of metrics, and consultations with experts and determined that the unit’s treatment turnover time was excessive and above industry benchmarks. This often resulted in increased utilization of overtime and on call. The team made recommendations centered on balanced workflow and efficient utilization of resources in order to reduce treatment turnover time and subsequently generate increased revenue and decreased expenditures.