Healthcare organizations know that improving coordination of care is vital to our future success. Accomplishing this objective requires us to align patient needs with the skills, abilities, and availability of nursing staff and treating physicians—in real time. Today, hospitals track patient needs through a variety of systems, including ADT, EHR, and even RTLS. Nursing resources are typically automated via the staffing system. Physician schedules and availability, however, can be much more difficult to ascertain. At moments when we can have a significant, positive impact on the quality and cost of care, there simply is no single, trusted source for this critical element of care coordination.

It’s 2:30 AM. A heart attack victim is being rushed to the ER. Who’s the cardiologist on call? At 10:00 that same morning, a knee replacement patient waits to be discharged. Where’s the physician who can process her release? Later in the day, an oncology patient’s son arrives, after a long drive, to visit his mother. He wants to know when the physician will be making rounds. He’s in no mood to wait for an answer.
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