All Clinics Are Not Created Equal
Authors: Ashely Dolson, Katie Phillips, Staci Bates, Jalyn Snelling, Melissa Morgan, Owen Kimball, and Jessica Morris
Faculty Supervisor: Lee McKinley, MBA, RHIA
Abstract:
Our class assisted the Coastal Health District of the Georgia Department of Public Health led by Meredith Avery and Robert Thornton (epidemiologists) with data acquisition and tracking of patient’s wait times while visiting the district’s clinics. We tracked the wait times of patients throughout the clinic, from the time they signed in to the clinic to the time they were checked out. The project impacted us personally by exposing how the local clinics work and, even though they are under the umbrella of the Georgia Department of Health, each clinic runs very differently. The time study is important in improving and streamlining processes from one clinic to the other.