5 Proven Strategies to Boost Patient Throughput and Cut Wait Times

Streamlining ED Throughput: How Smarter Communication Drives Faster, Safer Care

Emergency departments are facing mounting pressure. The average ER wait time in the United States is approximately 2 hours and 44 minutes.¹  But for patients admitted from the emergency department, delays can be even longer. A recent study found that over one in four patients admitted from the emergency department during slower months waited more than four hours for a hospital bed, surpassing national standards.² During peak winter months, that number jumps to 35%.  Even more concerning, the number of patients who leave emergency departments without being seen (LWBS) has risen in recent years, highlighting growing frustration and inefficiencies with communication.³ 

After triage, patients rely on coordinated care from nurses, techs, providers, and ancillary departments like radiology, labs, and case management. But when communication is fragmented—spread across pagers, answering services, and siloed systems—care slows down, throughput suffers, and patient outcomes decline. Efficient patient throughput is dependent on clear communication between these care team members. 

The Communication Bottleneck 

Outdated communication methods create one-to-one, trial-and-error workflows. Providers waste time tracking down the right contact, navigating inaccurate schedules, and waiting for callbacks. These delays compound across departments, leading to overcrowded EDs, increased labor costs, and lost revenue. 

To solve this, hospitals need a modern, integrated approach to clinical communication. Hospitals can navigate ED patient throughput challenges and streamline ED workflows with a modern clinical communication and collaboration (CC&C) platform and pre-hospital solution. 

5 Ways TigerConnect Improves ED Patient Throughput

1. Real-Time Collaboration Across Care Teams 

TigerConnect enables secure, real-time messaging, voice, and video communication between ED staff and consults, labs, radiology, and pharmacy. Priority messaging and read receipts help teams act quickly and reduce delays in clinical decision-making.

2. Seamless Care Transitions 

Whether transferring a patient to inpatient care, another ED, or back to their primary provider, TigerConnect ensures smooth handoffs. Intelligent routing and real-time alerts keep care teams informed and aligned, reducing wait times and improving continuity of care. In addition, pre-hospital coordination and external communication with EMS agencies are critical to improving throughput. TigerConnect enables EMS teams and referring providers to share updates in real time using GPS tracking, ensuring patients arrive with the right information and resources in place. 

3. Role-Based Messaging for Faster Response 

TigerConnect Roles and Teams lets staff contact the right person instantly—without searching schedules or directories. Predefined teams can be mobilized for emergencies or transfers, streamlining coordination and eliminating reliance on pagers or overhead systems. 

4. Escalation to Prevent Communication Gaps 

If a message goes unanswered, TigerConnect automatically escalates it to the next available role. This ensures critical updates are received and acted on, minimizing delays and keeping patient care moving forward. 

5. Secure, Compliant Communication 

TigerConnect is HIPAA-compliant and HITRUST-certified, supporting secure communication across mobile and desktop devices. Care teams can share patient updates, coordinate care, and even engage patients and families—all from a single platform. 

Ready to Improve ED Throughput?

TigerConnect’s Pre-Hospital solution routes critical patient information from EMS providers to the ED in real time, streamlining external communication and ensuring teams are prepared before arrival. Once patients reach the hospital, TigerConnect accelerates ED throughput by reducing delays and improving care coordination—key factors in delivering faster, more efficient care. 

Download the infographic to learn how your organization can accelerate door-to-treatment time with TigerConnect Pre-Hospital.