Using "Appointment Tickets" to Track Visit Duration as a Quality Improvement Initiative After Incorporating Laser Epilation in a Pilonidal Care Clinic.
J Pediatr Surg
; 59(4): 667-671, 2024 Apr.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38142191
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Laser epilation (LE) is effective in decreasing pilonidal disease (PD) recurrence, but laser use has not been a standard practice in pediatric surgery clinic. We hypothesized that "appointment tickets" can 1) track utilization and clinic visit delays, 2) inform patients of their clinic progress in real time.METHODS:
An observation study was performed on LE patients treated at our PD clinic 3/2021-7/2022. Two exam rooms were utilized for manual shaving and one for LE. After gluteal cleft hair shaving, various anesthetic (topical lidocaine, ice, or cryotherapy) was applied prior/during LE. At each visit, patient received an "appointment ticket" on which providers recorded the visit start/end time, manual shaving duration, local anesthetic application/wait time, LE duration. Visits were scheduled for 20 min-slots. Clinic staff recorded any delays (>20 min).RESULTS:
1317 visits were recorded. Mean number of visits per week was 18 ± 6. Mean total visit length was 60 ± 22 min, mean shaving time 15 ± 11 min, mean anesthetic application/wait time 16 ± 11 min, mean LE time 14 ± 9 min. Over the study period, average visit length has decreased, and average visits/clinic day has increased. Most delays occurred in months April, May, October-December. Delays due to patient late arrival occurred in May, July, and August of 2021, none in 2022.CONCLUSIONS:
LE visits have multiple components that required close coordination to ensure no clinic delays. Clinic delays spiked prior to summer and winter holidays. "Appointment tickets" provided patients with real-time visit progress tracked clinic utilization to improve the quality of pilonidal care delivery. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Level IV.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Remoção de Cabelo
/
Anestésicos
Limite:
Child
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Pediatr Surg
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos