MS pathway encourages physician buy-in.
Case managers at Shepherd Center in Atlanta were satisfied with their procedures regarding inpatient i.v. therapy for multiple sclerosis patients, but they saw an opportunity to further reduce length of stay by implementing a current-practice pathway for MS. Case managers say one reason they were able to secure physician support for the pathway was that they based the path on the center's own best practices. They also formed pathway authorship groups around physician champions. Following a patient's stay at Shepherd, inpatient case managers coordinate care with the center's outpatient clinic as well as with the patient's primary care physician and local hospital.
D019090:Case Management; D019091:Critical Pathways; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005845:Georgia; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D007902:Length of Stay; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000628:therapy; D010351:Patient Discharge; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities / Q000592:standards*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'