title: Synchronized time-motion study in the emergency department using a handheld computer application.
abstract: Emergency departments present a challenging environment for workflow evaluation and measurement of the effect of information system interventions. This paper describes a time-motion data collection tool built as a handheld computer application. The tool allows mobility of the observer and the intuitive inter-face supports rapid selection of tasks and frequent changes in tasks. It also allows documentation of overlapping tasks, a common occurrence in the emergency department. Synchronized data collection across the different providers of care in the emergency department is demonstrated, resulting in a data set from which task/event sequences can be built, documenting the ED care of individual patients. This technique should provide a very useful tool in measuring the effect of process changes in this difficult-to-assess environment, particularly changes in the information system.
authors.affiliation: Division of Emergency Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, 660 S. Euclid Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
authors.forename: Philip V
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Asaro
mesh_terms: D034201:Computers, Handheld; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D010564:Personnel, Hospital; D013996:Time and Motion Studies