Enhancing competitive position through an emergency room patient classification system.

The health care environment of the 1980's is vastly different than that of the previous two decades. Today, it is characterized by service competition and cost consciousness. As competition for emergency room services increases, hospitals need to reassess their business philosophies. A step in this direction is the establishment of a patient acuity system that will determine appropriate nurse staffing requirements and thus cost. By developing operational strategies of this type, it is perceived that hospital management will increase the emergency room's ability to compete in the volatile ambulatory care market. This article addresses the need for competitive strategies by describing development of an emergency room patient acuity system.