Froedtert Creates a New Orthopedic Care Experience Leading to Increase in Patients Seen and Improved Clinician Utilization
About Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin
The Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Ortho Now clinics provide same-day care for orthopedic and sports-related injuries, for sprains, strains, dislocations, and fractures. The clinics are an alternative to urgent care and offer in-person appointments with a provider who specializes in orthopedic care. Most major insurance is accepted and the co-pay is the same as a doctor’s office visit. The clinics offer onsite imaging and can also provide an expedited referral to an orthopedic specialist if needed. Ortho Now has two clinics in Wisconsin and treats about 350 patients per month.
“Health care consumers want quick, convenient access to care. Our collaboration with DexCare enables us to deliver a better patient experience that differentiates us in the market. This has made a significant impact on our growth in patient visits and efficiency of our care providers. We are able to see more patients with the same level of resources. Froedtert will continue to invest in helping people to discover, book, and receive care in a streamlined way.”
— Mike Anderes, President of Inception Health and the Chief Digital Officer for Froedtert Health & MCW
The Challenge
Froedtert & MCW is committed to providing expedited orthopedic care to those who need it, and being accessible to patients when they need care most. Previously, Ortho Now clinic patients needed to call to make an appointment or walk in and check if they could be seen that day. At times, open slots went unused or clinics were fully booked and could not accommodate walk-ins.
Froedtert & MCW also needed the ability to improve access and utilization of non-operative providers around the health system. The desire was that patients could receive care when and where they wanted for an initial work-up and treatment of their orthopedic injuries. Balancing patient demand, staff schedules, and resource usage to reduce burnout. To enable and standardize clinical workflow that allows all providers to work at top-of-license and provide care for more patients at the highest quality, Froedtert & MCW turned to DexCare.
The Solution
The Froedtert & MCW health network selected the DexCare platform to enable online scheduling and capacity optimization for its orthopedic specialty. After working closely with the DexCare implementation team, the Ortho Now clinics began offering online time slots for booking in March of 2020. Patients can now view available times and book directly online. The clinics now have a hybrid approach and offer online self-scheduling, scheduling by phone, and they continue to care for walk-ins. Each morning, online appointments are offered for open slots available that day at the clinics.
DexCare’s platform has also allowed the health system to make the operational changes and resource balancing that enable their providers to work at top-of-license, treat more patients, and provide the best-fitting, highest-quality treatment for all. Through intelligent routing, DexCare enables increased access and capacity in Orthopedics for the health system and enables them to quickly achieve and exceed their operational goals.
“I believe that online scheduling has made a significant difference for Ortho Now. Before getting in their car, patients want to know they will be seen. They want the convenience and peace of mind that online scheduling provides. The results so far look very strong proving that online scheduling is driving patient volume. There is a great opportunity to continue to expand this capability to providers who may not have a full schedule right now. We have a tremendous amount of volume that needs to be seen and it’s about opening that access up.”
— Emily Will, Orthopedic Clinic Manager, Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Health Network
The Results
With DexCare, Froedtert & MCW can provide more patient access and care with their existing resources. Providers are working at top-of-license- with PAs performing the initial clinical assessment, ordering and coordinating imaging upfront, and assessing the right specialist for the clinical need. This new approach reassures patients with low acuity concerns that they don’t have a fracture or a major issue, informs them of the right treatment regimen, and expedites care for highly likely surgical candidates on the schedule of the most appropriate orthopedic specialist. This change has diverted visits that would have gone to urgent care, the emergency department, or ended up on the orthopedic surgeon’s schedule for an initial consult. Surgeons can now see more patients in need of surgical intervention- thereby increasing satisfaction and reducing provider burnout.
Concurrently, the addition of the online appointment scheduling enables the Ortho Now clinics to provide a modern, self-serve experience to consumers who are in need of immediate orthopedic care in an increasingly competitive market. This effectively reduces unused inventory, increases clinician utilization, and ensures that highly sought appointments don’t go unfilled.
Froedtert & MCW experienced an overall reduction of unused open slots and higher provider utilization
2X
doubled patient visits from July 2020 to July 2022
~75%
of appointments booked online
45%
repeat patients
19%
of net new patients (new EMR record created)
I found the experience at the Ortho Now clinic to be incredibly fast and convenient. I saw my doctor about a recent injury and had an x-ray taken. That night, I saw a notification in MyChart with the x-ray results indicating I had a fracture. After a quick online search at 2:30 am I was able to find and book an appointment at Ortho Now to be seen at 8:30 am that day. I am so grateful that I was able to schedule an appointment so quickly without waiting for a referral or making lots of calls. It was wonderful to know that in just a few hours I would be seen and get the care I needed, exactly when I needed it.Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Health Network patient
Health care consumers want quick, convenient access to care. Our collaboration with DexCare enables us to deliver a better patient experience that differentiates us in the market. This has made a significant impact on our growth in patient visits and efficiency of our care providers. We are able to see more patients with the same level of resources. Froedtert will continue to invest in helping people to discover, book, and receive care in a streamlined way.Mike Anderes, President of Inception Health and the Chief Digital Officer for Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Health Network
I believe that online scheduling has made a significant difference for Ortho Now. Before getting in their car, patients want to know they will be seen. They want the convenience and peace of mind that online scheduling provides. The results so far look very strong proving that online scheduling is driving patient volume. There is a great opportunity to continue to expand this capability to providers who may not have a full schedule right now. We have a tremendous amount of volume that needs to be seen and it’s about opening that access up.Emily Will, Orthopedic Clinic Manager, Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Health Network