Lengthy emergency department wait times are nothing new. This has been a national issue since the 1980s. It’s a challenge for every health system – a challenge with no easy solutions.
ChristianaCare is home to America’s 15th busiest ED, and in this replay of one of our most popular episodes, “The Toughest Questions in Health Care,” Dr. Kert Anzilotti, ChristianaCare Chief Medical Officer, and Ric Cuming, ChristianaCare Chief Operating Officer, deliver insightful answers to the question, “Why can ED wait times be so long?”.
Together, we walk the complex maze of healthcare efficiency, examining the intricacies behind long queues. Learn how factors like hospital-wide patient volume, case severity prioritization and the ripple effects of post-acute care facility shortages contribute to a significant bottleneck. And explore a data-driven approach to improving patient flow and emergency department functionality.
Finally, we provide guidance on choosing the most suitable venue of care for a variety of medical needs, a major way the public can be part of helping hospitals reduce wait times in the ED.
Ric Cuming is chief operating officer of ChristianaCare. In this role, Ric oversees the delivery of efficient and fiscally responsible system operations. He also works with other leaders to ensure high-quality and safe patient care. Ric joined ChristianaCare in 2016 as the system’s first chief nurse executive.
Dr. Kert Anzilotti is chief medical officer for ChristianaCare. His work focuses on the optimization of care delivery across the health care system through strategic visioning, network development, clinical technology implementation and leveraging medical informatics.
Links
While most cuts and scrapes will heal themselves, some wounds can develop into a more serious situation.
In that case, you may need to see wound care specialists. Dr. Jim Ley, Medical Director of the ChristianaCare Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Center, and Podiatrist Dr. Scott Reich talk to us about the kinds of wounds they see, the specialized treatments they offer such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and when to know if you might benefit from their care.
Links
- ChristianaCare Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Center
- ChristianaCare News - What is Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy?
Homelessness can impact both physical and mental health, and make accessing medical care difficult. As a result, people experiencing homelessness often face higher rates of poor health outcomes than people with housing.
Which leads us to the next question in our Toughest Questions in Health Care series: How can health care impact homelessness? Dr. Ben Golden, Program Director for the ChristianaCare Medical Respite Program at the New Castle County Hope Center, and Dr. Ashley Panichelli, Clinical Director for ChristianaCare Complex Primary Care share details on the difficulties that arise in providing care for patients experiencing homelessness, steps that ChristianaCare is taking to counter those issues, and their hopes for the future in this field of care.
Dr. Ben Golden, M.D., completed his medical training at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, IL where he took an interest in healthcare disparities and care for patients experiencing homelessness. As Program Director for the ChristianaCare Medical Respite Program at the New Castle County Hope Center, he provides complex primary care for the residents of the facility. Dr. Golden also continues to practice Emergency Medicine at all of Christiana’s sites.
Dr. Ashley Panichelli, M.D., the clinical director of Complex Primary Care and Community Medicine at ChristianaCare. Dr Panichelli is passionate about teaching, mentoring, and program development, and routinely speaks to the news media about family medicine and the importance of vaccinations. Dr Panichelli’s specific interests include inpatient medicine and safe transitions of care, residency quality and safety, Just Culture, women’s health, and resident simulation curriculums.
Links
- ChristianaCare News - ChristianaCare Rolls Out New Mobile Health Services Vans Supported by Barclays
- ChristianaCare News - ChristianaCare Talks Community Health With Wilmington, State Officials
- ChristianaCare Mobile Health Services
- New Castle County Hope Center
- Friendship House
- Food Bank of Delaware
Tremor is a neurological condition that affects approximately 1% of the population overall, and 5% of adults age 60 and over. It is expected to increasingly impact Delawareans as the state's population ages.
A new treatment for people suffering from essential tremor and Parkinson's Disease is a game-changer for ChristianaCare patients. Dr. Justin Martello, Director of the Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Program at ChristianaCare, shares inspiring insights into MR-guided focused ultrasound, including how it works, exciting success stories, and potential uses for this technology for treating other conditions.
Justin Martello, M.D., is a board certified neurologist specializing in movement disorders and Parkinson’s Disease at ChristianaCare. As Director of the Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Program at ChristianaCare, he has developed Delaware's first and only comprehensive Parkinson's disease program.
Links
- ChristianaCare News - ChristianaCare Is First in Delaware to Offer MR-Guided Ultrasound for Essential and Parkinson’s Tremor
- ChristianaCare Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Program
- MR-Guided Focused Ultrasound
- Harnessing the Power of Ultrasound to Treat Essential Tremors
- Parkinson's Disease of Delaware
The world of technology has expanded rapidly over the past few years, from video chatting to generative artificial intelligence. And while it's all become part of our day to day lives, it's also directly influencing how we receive our medical care.
For our 8th topic in our Toughest Questions in Health Care series we’re asking – "How is technology changing health care?" Randy Gaboriault, ChristianaCare's Chief Digital and Information Officer, and Dr. Tim Shiuh, ChristianaCare's Chief Health Information Officer discuss what it takes to utilize new and innovative technologies that positively impact patient care while also simplifying the work of those providing care.
Randy Gaboriault, MS, MBA, has been dubbed an “exceedingly rare, triple threat CIO” by media. IT initiatives that Randy has spearheaded have garnered numerous distinctions, which include Information Week’s “Twenty Great Ideas To Steal,” Computerworld’s “Premier 100 IT Leaders,” a four-time awardee of CIO Magazine’s “CIO 100,” and one of Becker’s Healthcare 20 Chief Digital Officers to Know.
Timothy Shiuh, M.D., MHCDS, FACEP, leads the development and implementation of a comprehensive enterprise digital health and clinical information strategy that facilitates effective, value-based, “high tech-high touch” health care delivery across the continuum of care and promotes digitally-led clinical transformation.
Links
- Health & Technology Innovation Center at ChristianaCare
- Transformational Leadership Awards Honors ChristianaCare for "Trailblazing" Innovation
- Introducing Digital Forms, Appointment Reminders and Check-In
Did you know that in 1796, Dr. Edward Jenner created the world's first successful vaccine? Since then, vaccines have greatly reduced diseases that once harmed or killed babies, children, and adults. But people all over the world still become seriously ill or even die from diseases that vaccines can help prevent. Which is why it's important to stay up-to-date on vaccinations.
On this episode of For the Love of Health, ChristianaCare Chief Infection Prevention Officer, Dr. Marci Drees, and Associate Infection Prevention Officer, Dr. Stephen Eppes join us to explain the necessity of continuing to discuss vaccinations as a whole, especially outside of outbreaks and pandemics.
Marci Drees, M.D., MS, is the Chief Infection Prevention Officer and hospital epidemiologist for ChristianaCare. Dr. Drees serves as a councilor on the Board of Trustees of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), and previously served as SHEA's liaison to the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). She is board certified in internal medicine and infectious diseases.
Stephen Eppes, M.D., is the Associate Infection Prevention Officer and Pediatric Infectious Disease Specialist at ChristianaCare. Dr. Eppes is also Co-Chair of the Immunization Coalition of Delaware.
Links
- Child Immunizations & Screenings
- ChristianaCare News - How Vaccines Can Save Your Life
- ChristianaCare News - Think Vaccines Are Just for Kids? Think Again!
- CDC - Immunization Schedule By Age (Adult)
- CDC - Immunization Schedule By Age (Child & Adolescent)
- CDC - Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)
- Immunize.org - National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases
- Immunization Coalition of Delaware
According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the U.S. population age 65 and over grew nearly five times faster than the total population over the 100 years from 1920 to 2020. As the population ages, more people are worried about aging in place – and being safe, well and independent in their own homes.
Since 1922, ChristianaCare HomeHealth has helped neighbors in Delaware live independently and get the care they need.
On this episode of For the Love of Health, Ann Painter, President of ChristinaCare HomeHealth and Pam Szczerba, Director of Quality, Education and Risk Management for ChristianaCare HomeHealth offer valuable insights into this evolving field.
Learn about the significant shift towards home-based care and the range of services ChristianaCare Home Health has perfected over a century of dedicated service, from skilled nursing to physical therapy and medical social work.
Ann Painter has more than 25 years of experience in the home health care industry and has demonstrated exceptional skills as a transformational leader.
Pam Szczerba is director of Quality & Risk Mangement at for ChristianaCare HomeHealth. In this role, she leads the Quality & Safety and Education departments.
Links
High quality and safe care are two things you’d expect from any health care experience. ChristianaCare has achieved national recognitions, awards and accreditations for quality and safety. Recently, U.S. News & World Report ranked Maryland as No. 1 and Delaware as No. 2 in the nation for hospital quality. What does it all mean?
For our 7th topic in our Toughest Questions in Health Care series we’re asking – 'Why are quality and safety so important in health care?' Dr. Kert Anzilotti, ChristianaCare’s System Chief Medical Officer and Interim President of the Medical Group, and Tim Bowers, Vice President of Clinical Effectiveness at ChristianaCare discuss the organization-wide commitment to positively impact the quality and safety of care delivered by ChristianaCare caregivers to patients and the community.
Kert Anzilotti, M.D., MBA focuses on the optimization of care delivery across the health care system through strategic visioning, network development, clinical technology implementation and leveraging medical informatics.
Tim Bowers, MS, CIC, CPHQ is the vice president of Clinical Effectiveness at ChristianaCare, where he is responsible for overseeing programs within ChristianaCare dedicated to patient safety, including the logistics of preventing infections in patients.
Links
Colorectal cancer is the second most deadly cancer worldwide, equally affecting both men and women. According to the American Cancer Society, when colorectal cancer is caught early, 91% of patients survive five years or longer… however, that percentage drops significantly if the cancer has already spread to distant parts of the body before it’s found.
In this episode of For the Love of Health, Dr. Bruce Boman, medical director of Cancer Genetics and Stem Cell Biology at ChristianaCare provides invaluable perspectives on his team's research focused on finding a cure for colon cancer.
Whether you're a medical professional, a patient, or simply someone interested in the advancements in cancer treatment, this episode is a fascinating listen.
Renowned for his work in colorectal cancer, and a cancer survivor himself since 2000, Bruce M. Boman, M.D., Ph.D., is an attending physician and director for Cancer Genetics and Stem Cell Biology for ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute. He also represents the Graham Cancer Center as a scientist with the Center for Translational Cancer Research.
With forward-thinking collaboration, the Cawley Center for Translational Cancer Research at ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute links physicians and scientific researchers under the same roof. Working side by side, together they identify needs of individual patients at the bedside, explore solutions in the lab and translate those results directly into treatment plans as unique as the individuals who will benefit from them.
Links
- Q&A: Research Pioneer Bruce Boman Gets 'Ever Closer' to Cure for Colorectal Cancer
- ChristianaCare Scientists Discover New Link to Colon Cancer Stem Cell Growth
- ChristianaCare Colon Cancer Research
- Cawley Center for Translational Cancer Research at ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, from July to December of 2022, 58.5% of adults used the internet to look for health or medical information. But while most of us have done it, is it the right approach when you need medical attention?
For the sixth episode of our “The Toughest Questions in Health Care” series, we're asking the question, "Can the internet replace primary care?" ChristianaCare Physician Executive for Core and Primary Care Dr. Priya Dixit-Patel and ChristianaCare Virtual Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Melissa VanNeerden explain why the idea of a “medical home” that provides holistic support is a better approach to foster long-term well-being. You’ll also hear how technological advances are making it easier to meet health needs in the ways that work best for individual patients.
Priyanka Dixit-Patel, MD is ChristianaCare Physician Executive for Core and Advanced Primary Care. She is a family medicine physician who specializes in primary care, gynecology and women's health.
Melissa vanNeerden, AGNP is an experienced Adult-Geriatric Nurse Practitioner at ChristianaCare Virtual Primary Care. She has been in practice since 2016 focusing on disease management and prevention.
Links
