Challenges and Growth

Every year, 60,000 patients come through the emergency department at University hospital. Their experience depends not only on interaction with physicians and health care workers but on the strategies developed by the administration to help lower waiting-room times, improve hospital flow, and support the wellness of their care teams. Christy Hopkins, MD, former chief value officer for the Emergency Department and now the inaugural chair for the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine, shares the challenges and wins of emergency medicine. 

Challenging work, 24/7 care, and burnout. Why do physicians choose emergency medicine?

Serving on the frontline of medicine is both demanding, yet immensely rewarding. U of U Health emergency medicine physicians take pride in being the safety net for our local community and regional partners. Our providers are deeply passionate about their work, both in the hospital and through community partnerships that serve vulnerable populations affected by homelessness, addiction, or limited medical resources. In addition to clinical care, our physicians serve to educate future doctors and emergency physicians and engage in research that advances the field of emergency medicine.

These roles give emergency physicians a unique perspective on the medical landscape, patient barriers, health care system gaps, and opportunities to improve community health and wellbeing.

Given the field's intensity, prioritizing team wellness is crucial. As leaders, we must support our teams professionally and personally. Flexible schedules, support for life events, team-building opportunities, and work environment improvements are some ways we ensure our teams can continue to provide extraordinary patient care day after day.

Growth in U Health has fueled an 80% increase in emergency-service volumes over the last 10 years. What accounts for this kind of growth?

The growth in emergency services is directly related to the overall expansion of the U of U Health system. Our patients prefer to keep their care within one trusted system for both routine and complex health care needs. This rapid growth has stressed emergency services: we are currently trying to care for over 60,000 patients per year in a space designed for less than 40,000.

To better meet the needs of our growing patient population, we plan to expand our waiting room and triage bays and have established a rapid \-assessment zone to better serve patients with lower acuity medical issues.

What role do academic health care centers play in addressing significant ongoing health care challenges? 

Academic health care centers face increasingly complex fiscal demands and ongoing challenges to provide high-quality, efficient, and cost-effective care. As system leaders, we need to continue to work together to streamline patient care, increase our outpatient capacity for new and existing patients, and improve our hospital’s efficiency, which helps to reduce emergency department boarding and hospital length of stays. Given the rapidly changing health care environment, it is crucial for clinical leaders to maintain strong partnerships with community, hospital, and institutional leadership. This collaboration allows us to develop innovative care models that extend the reach of our academic center and improve care not only in our community but throughout our region.