Giving Back Time: Transforming Nursing Workflows

In the pursuit of providing leading-edge patient care, UCLA Health IT's Nursing Informatics team partnered with Nursing on our Giving Back Time initiative to optimize workflows and increase valuable time with patients. This collaborative effort focuses on reducing documentation, fostering a healthier work environment, and leveraging IT solutions. As part of the initiative, two significant projects completed in 2023 exemplify the positive impact of this initiative: 

Within Defined Limits 

The WDL nursing documentation project aimed to standardize and streamline nursing documentation across all inpatient areas. The existing documentation process was time-consuming, unstandardized, and lacked alignment across areas. The opportunity arose to restructure nursing documentation, align assessments, and improve transparency. 

In partnership, Nursing and our informatics team formed a nursing task force that developed assessment definitions, identified the documentation workflow, and standardized flowsheets. Our ISS Informatics Training team and Nurse Educators worked together to develop and distribute training materials to all inpatient nursing departments contributign to the huge success of this program.

The WDL initiative launched in October 2023 and achieved: 

• 326 flowsheets removed 

• 3,542 flowsheet choice selections removed 

• 1,838 WDL row criteria information added to flowsheet rows 

• 1,800 standardized flowsheet rows across all inpatient nursing areas. 

The Edinburgh Post Natal Depression Screen 

The Edinburgh Post Natal Depression Screen implementation addressed inefficiencies in the paper-based workflow of administering the depression scale to perinatal patients. The paper process involved transcribing patient responses into CareConnect, leading to potential errors and increased nursing documentation time.  

The implementation of the Edinburgh screening tool involved collaboration with the perinatal department and the various teams within UCLA Health IT. The workflow was redesigned to allow patients to use their Bedside iPads to complete the Depression scale. Patients were automatically assigned the screening questionnaire on admission and after giving birth. The submitted responses were integrated into CareConnect, displaying in different colors based on the severity of depression to alert nurses if further action was required. Since implementation in June 2023, the new workflow achieved: 

• Time given back to Nursing: 231 minutes. 

• Time/effort saved per Edinburgh screen: 31.2 seconds, 7 keypresses, 15 clicks. 

• % of bedside activation rates: RR prior to go-live 39%, after go-live 55%; SM prior 50%, SM after go-live 89%. 

• Decrease in time spent by nursing, decrease in documentation, and an increase in bedside utilization rates across hospitals. 

Looking to the Future 

The successful completion of these projects highlights the power of collaboration, innovation, and a commitment to improving patient care. The Giving Back Time initiative serves as a beacon of efficiency, setting new standards for excellence in healthcare IT. 

Learn more about this initiative on the Giving Back Time webpage. For questions or inquiries, please reach out to our Nursing Informatics Team.