A multidisciplinary team worked to devise a program pilot proving feasibility to have an RN call

American Society of Anesthesiology Physical Status Classification (ASA Class) 1 & 2 patients

preoperatively. A Nurse Practitioner (NP) conducted the pilot and showed success.

The RN position was hired and the program began looking to touch more patients and add value to day

of surgery preparedness. An additional RN FTE and two PRN RN positions were hired to facilitate

this work.

A Clinical Lead NP role was developed to review cases with RNs, act as a liaison with the

anesthesiologists, and serve as a resource, mentor, and educator.

Several technologies have been incorporated into these roles to provide an immediate view of the

information for real time decision making.

Due to high surgical volume in an academic

medical center, there were continuous challenges

with the optimization of surgical patients. The

need to touch more patients for anesthesia

preparation created an opportunity for innovative

strategies to add value to the organization and the

patient experience. Innovative technology was

crucial to assist in the assessment of patient

information and quickly communicate regarding

appointments, current medications, plan of care,

and medical history.

The Virtual Nurse: Adding Value to the Perioperative Experience

Laura Hollis, MSN, RN, CCRN; Julie Hamm, MSN, ACNP-BC; Kristy Bishop, ADN, RN3

Vanderbilt University Medical Center

PURPOSE

Utilize nurse (RN) callers to optimize the patient

experience and satisfaction with the use of a

“virtual” phone call option for the preoperative

anesthesia evaluation as well as add value to other

aspects of the perioperative arena.

Optimizing patient records reduces time spent day

of surgery seeking information, additional patient

testing, and decreases risk of cancellation.

BACKGROUND PROCESS OF IMPLEMENTATION

Vanderbilt Preoperative Evaluation Center website. (2014).

https://vandypoint.mc.vanderbilt.edu/sites/anesthesiology/VPEC/SitePages/Home.aspx

IMPLICATIONS

Patient preparation with the use of preoperative

RN “virtual” visits adds a level of convenience

for patients, eliminates patient clinic wait time,

cost of getting to a clinic visit, as well as

improves day of surgery flow and downtime

within the perioperative system. This work has

also shown improved satisfaction and quality

for patients, physicians, and staff.

CONCLUSION

OBJECTIVE

Create RN positions that would complete

“virtual” appointments using technology to

facilitate pertinent patient information for

anesthesia providers in order to add value to the

patient experience and optimize perioperative

patient movement on the day of surgery.

RN VOLUME

TECHNOLOGIES

Volume steadily increasing with onboarding staff. Patient and Staff satisfaction/engagement vital to success.

LYNC application through Outlook, along with Clinic Whiteboard and Message Basket applications within StarPanel, create real

time data streaming enhancing communication and situational awareness thus increasing productivity.

REFERENCES

To optimize the patient experience and add

value to perioperative system, the role of the

RN caller has been developed and

incorporated to provide current patient

information and medication reconciliation

preoperatively without an in-person

appointment. Retrieval of outside records and

other pertinent information allows for

improved patient preparation for day of

surgery. This role has increased perioperative

efficiency and productivity as well as created

an opportunity to reach more patients that

previous efforts allowed.

Technology has improved communication with

patients as well as within the clinic and

organization.

Growth and development of this program has

expanded the number of FTEs as well as

provided an opportunity for growth and

development of nursing staff.

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RN Volume