ndd’s EasyOne Pro enables rural community hospital to perform 300% more PFTs a month
Case study: Clay County Medical Center
- Unreliable: Previous pulmonary function test device presented difficulties in getting accurate and reproducible diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO) readings.
- Time-consuming: Previous pulmonary function test device required frequent time-intensive restarts, which led to a 45-minute downtime between patients, creating an unnecessary bottleneck on the clinic’s ability to treat patients.
- Lack of support: The clinic was unable to get support from the previous device manufacturer, breaching the trust of the clinic.
- Patient impact: Patient interest was negatively affected by the time-intensive restart process. Patients became demotivated, leading to patient frustration with the clinic due to the previous PFT device. Patient retention suffered.
- Financial impact: With fewer patients, the clinic did not realize its full revenue potential.
- Rapid startup: Press of a button and device is ready to perform PFT testing, reducing time required between patients.
- Calibration-free: No manual calibration is required, eliminating concerns of unreliable readings.
- Patient-friendly: DLCO prompts and messages assist patients while they are performing the test, helping patients get a quality test result.
- Reliable: Device doesn’t require shutdowns and on the rare occasion a restart is needed, device powers back on in minutes.
- Time-saving: Quick and complete PFT results are available in under 20 minutes.
- State-of-the-art software and technology: Superior, reliable TrueFlow and TrueCheck technology for accurate and reliable PFT measurements.
- Simple and accessible: Easy to learn and use, making it more quickly integrated into a clinic’s workflow, preventing additional burden on staff.
A rural community hospital was experiencing challenges with their previous complete pulmonary function test (PFT) device. These challenges stemmed from an unreliable device and lack of manufacturer support, which diminished both staff morale and patient retention. Upon switching to ndd’s EasyOne Pro, these problems were ameliorated, significantly improving the clinic’s ability to treat their patients effectively and efficiently, as evidenced by a 300% increase in the clinic’s monthly PFTs.
About Clay County Medical Center #
Clay County Medical Center is a rural community hospital in Clay County, Kansas, near Kansas State University that employs over 300 staff members in more than 30 departments. Motivated by compassion, respect, integrity, quality, and service, Clay County Medical Center aims to provide the highest quality of care possible to its community.
Challenge #
Though the clinic had initially had a positive experience with their previous PFT device, Clay County Medical Center began experiencing multiple frustrations.
These frustrations ranged from frequent restarts leading to lost time with patients and a decline in patient retention, unreliable DLCO readings, and unrealized and impeded revenue. When the device frequently malfunctioned, manufacturer support was nowhere to be found, causing even more difficulty for the clinic.
This unfortunate experience led to a few negative outcomes: clinic burnout, patient discomfort and annoyance, and an unrealized revenue for the clinic, all of which are particularly burdensome consequences for rural community hospitals.
Solution #
After some time of trying to make things work, the challenges the clinic experienced with the previous pulmonary function device proved to be significant enough that Clay County Medical Center began to look for alternatives. Upon the recommendation of the hospital’s director and one of its respiratory therapists, both of whom had prior experience with ndd Medical Technology’s EasyOne Pro portable PFT device, the clinic made the switch.
The EasyOne Pro, a portable complete PFT device, offered solutions to all the challenges the clinic had been experiencing. As many of the previous challenges faced by the clinic happened at the interface between clinic staff and patients — long start-up times, frequent restarts, unreliable readings, burdensome tests — the EasyOne Pro’s simplicity, reliability, and accessibility were major benefits for the clinic. Additional benefits include:
- Patient and user friendly, with prompts for the patient to follow while performing the test, leading to more positive experiences for the staff and patients
- Self-quality control through patented TrueFlow and TrueCheck Technology, ensuring DLCO trials are accurate and validated — and conducted quickly and efficiently — each time
- Though it’s rarely needed, ndd is quick, efficient, and extremely responsive to support requests
Since then, the clinic has been performing 40 to 45 complete PFTs monthly, a massive increase of more than 300%.
Result #
Dana Coberly, Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT), Clay County Medical Center’s current Director of Respiratory Therapists, has been with the hospital for 25 years. Previously, she wasn’t fond of performing outpatient PFTs, but that has since changed since the hospital made the switch to the EasyOne Pro. Ronda Rosenquist, Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT), has over 34 years of experience in respiratory care and over 20 years at Clay County Medical Center. Together, they report the EasyOne Pro has had a made positive impact on their clinic staff and patients.
Dana and Ronda report that in the past, the majority of patients in the clinic had been older than 75 years old, but with a recently joined pulmonologist, the clinic has begun seeing a lot of younger people with asthma. This increased patient load is possible due to the device’s simplicity and efficiency. Prior to leveraging ndd Medical Technology’s solution, the Clay County Medical Center was only performing ten to twelve complete pulmonary function tests a month. Since then, the clinic has been performing 40 to 45 complete PFTs monthly, a massive increase of more than 300%. This significant increase indicates that the clinic is seeing — and retaining — a much higher volume of patients. This steady flow of a high volume of patients provides the hospital with a much steadier revenue stream, allowing the clinic and staff to feel more stable and freer to cultivate a better environment to treat patients.
This experience has had incalculable benefits for the clinic and its patient community. As Clay County Medical Center’s approach to healthcare is community-based, these benefits — the improved patient experience, increased patient retention, and therefore increased revenue generation — enable the clinic to achieve its vision of providing the best care possible to their community. Most importantly, clinicians can spend more time dedicated to the patient after conducting the tests. The clinicians and respiratory therapists feel confident in the results, providing them with the opportunity to engage with the patients, educate them, and collaborate in developing a care plan with next steps for improving their quality of life.
To learn more about services offered at Clay County Medical Center, visit: https://www.ccmcks.org/.