Patient Flow Portal

Bed Board Quick Guide

How to log on 11

Accessing the PFP Bed Board for the first time 2

User Preference Login Screen 3

Reviewing Estimated Date of Discharge 4

Reviewing Length of Stay 5

Using AMO & Ward Filters 6

Finding an Empty Bed 7

Requesting an Inter-Hospital Transfer 8

Search Functionality 9

Populating a Bed Profile 10

This Quick Guide provides staff with an easy reference guide to perform key tasks in the Patient Flow

Portal (PFP) Bed Board module.

The Quick Guide also incorporates the relevant Patient Flow System elements to improve patient flow

within the organisation. To fully utilise the PFP Bed Board staff must action the information that the tool

provides. For more information go to: http://www.health.nsw.gov.au/pfs/Pages/default.aspx

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1. How to log on

The Patient Flow Portal (PFP) Bed Board provides an overview of occupancy by ward for a Local Health

District or hospital, facilitates the Inter Hospital transfer process and provides access to a suite of reports.

Patient Flow Managers can view in real-time the patients’ EDD and Length of Stay from an LHD, Facility or

Ward perspective.

The PFP Bed Board uses your ‘Active Directory’ or network access logon. Once you have logged onto your

computer the same log on will allow you to access the Patient Flow Portal. Local Health Districts will need

to establish their own guidelines on the approval procedure adopted. Please refer to the NSW Health

Privacy Manual 2005 (PD2005_593) and the Electronic Information Security Policy 2013 (PD2013_0330)

for more information on privacy and security.

To logon to the PFP Bed Board, please follow these simple steps:

1. Log on to your computer/network:

2. Click on the PFP/Bed Board link on your intranet or go to http://pfp.healthtech.nswhealth.net/

3. The Patient Flow Portal will open at the log in screen, enter your user details in the blue “Patient Flow

Portal user login” section:

Where does the patient information come from? The information that populates the PFP Bed Board, with the exception of W4W and Transfers comes from your Patient Administration System (PAS) in real time. This means there are no delays in

information retrieval. If the information does not look up to date, click the refresh button .

2. Accessing the PFP Bed Board for the first time

The Patient Flow Portal (PFP) Bed Board uses your current network logon. All staff can access the PFP

Bed Board but there are different security levels for different access, which determines what you see

once your access is approved. Local confidentiality agreements must be completed before access is

granted to staff members. Access is granted from one of a hierarchy of approved users at the LHD or

facility.

To get approval for access to the PFP Bed Board, follow these simple steps:

1. Click on the PFP/Bed Board icon on your desktop or the link from your intranet. This will open up an

access request page:

Select the level of access you require - if you are unsure what access you need, discuss with your

manager.

2. Continue to select the appropriate Local Health District/s and/or facility/s and/or ward/s from the

column on the right. Drag and drop across to the main table to populate your user access.

3. Click on the ‘Save’ button and notify the locally allocated approver at your LHD/Hospital that you

have requested access to.

4. You can view the progress of your request by clicking on the ‘My Access’ tab.

Why isn’t it working? If you are unable to load the PFP Bed Board, it could be because you do not have Adobe Flash Player 11.x (latest version) installed on your computer. Contact your IT support desk to ensure it is installed on your computer.

3. User Preference Login Screen

All Patient Flow Portal (PFP) users have the ability to set up their own user preference default login screen. This allows each user the ability to identify and select any PFP screen / filters they wish to see as their login screen when first logging into the PFP.

To set up your user preference login screen:

1. Access your ‘User Account’ via your account name located on the top right hand side of the screen. This opens up your ‘Security Administration window’

2. Click on the ‘User Preference’ tab to open the window below.

3. Select which LHD / Facility you would like as your default login

4. Select which PFP module you would like as your default, i.e. Predictive Tool, Dashboard,

BedBoard etc.

5. Select your BedBoard primary view, allows you to select the default Primary View whenever you

view the Bed Board module for any facility.

6. Select your desired BedBoard default filters for your LHD / Facility / Ward Type / Ward Group /

AMO / Specialty.

7. Check ‘ED accessible wards only’ box if you would like your default screen to filter via ED

accessible wards.

8. Click ‘Save’ button when completed

Why should I set up user preference in the PFP?

Different filters can be set up for each facility the user has access to and the filters will be applied when the user selects to view the Bed Board for the given facility. It allows each PFP user to the ability to login to the PFP and see any module, with filtered data, which directs them to their unique login page providing patient flow information suiting their requirements.

4. Reviewing Estimated Date of Discharge

Why Enter an Estimated Date of Discharge?

The Estimated Date of Discharge (EDD) predicts the likely date that a patient will be transferred from the hospital back into the community. It should be used as a planning tool to coordinate a patient’s care. The accuracy of the EDD is dependent on what is entered into your Patient Administration System (PAS).

How to review EDDs

1. To review EDDs across a facility, click on the primary view filter and select EDD:

2. To view who has overstayed their EDD and their EDD has not been updated, click on the ‘Expired’

radio button. Clicking on the ‘Clear’ radio button will return all patients and display their EDD.

3. To review the EDD’s for patients admitted under a given AMO, click on the AMO filter button, select

the Doctor, click or drag the Doctor into the box on the right and then click ‘Filter data’.

4. To view all patients again, click on the ‘Clear all filters’ icon.

What do I do with this information? Reviewing EDDs can be an important task for patient care coordination. The snapshot will provide an indication of where patients are in their hospital stay. EDDs should be reviewed frequently and used in bed management at daily bed meetings. This information can assist with demand and capacity planning.

5. Reviewing Length of Stay

Why Review Length of Stay (LOS)?

The LOS filters can assist clinicians in planning and coordinating care to identify and avoid unnecessary delays

to care.

How to Review LOS

1. To review LOS across a facility, click on the primary view filter and select LOS> or LOS

2. For example, click on the ‘>14’ radio button which will display all patients whose LOS is greater than 14

days. Clicking on the ‘Clear’ radio button will return all patients and display their LOS.

3. To review the LOS for patients admitted under a given specialty, click on the AMO filter button, select the

Specialty, click or drag the Specialty into the box on the right and then click ‘Filter Data’.

4. To view all patients again, click on the ‘Clear all filters’ icon.

What do I do with this information?

By reviewing LOS for patients regularly, delays in care can be identified and managed effectively. By

knowing the average LOS by speciality standardised practices can be put in place across wards, to

improve patient outcomes. Reviewing LOS during daily bed meetings may assist in care coordination for

patients over the average LOS.

6. Using ‘AMO’ and ‘Ward’ filters

Why Review Patient data using AMO or Ward filters?

The AMO & Ward filters enable the PFP user to filter patient views by Doctor, Specialty, Ward Type or Ward

Group and thus allow clinicians to plan and coordinate care to avoid unnecessary delays to an inpatient’s

treatment plan and their length of stay in hospital.

How to filter by ‘AMO’ or Specialty

1. To review patient lists across a facility by AMO or Specialty, click on the ‘AMO filter’ button.

2. To view patients admitted under one or more particular Doctor(s), select the Doctor(s) and add them to the

box on the right by clicking the ‘add’ arrow or dragging and dropping and then click ‘Filter Data’.

3. To view patients admitted under one or more particular Specialty, select the Specialty(s) and add them to

the box on the right by clicking the ‘add’ arrow or dragging and dropping and then click ‘Filter Data.

4. To view all patients again, click on the ‘Clear all filters’ icon

How to filter by ‘Ward Type across LHD or Facility

1. To review patient lists across an LHD or facility by Ward Type, click on the ‘Ward Filter’ button.

2. To view patients admitted into a particular ‘Ward Type’, select the Ward Type(s) and add them to the box

on the right by clicking the ‘add’ arrow or dragging and dropping and then click ‘Filter Data’.

3. To view all patients again, click on the ‘Clear all filters’ icon

How to filter by ‘Ward Group’ across a Facility only

1. To review patient lists across a facility by Ward Group, click on the ‘Ward Filter’ button.

2. To view patients admitted into a particular ‘Ward Group’, select the radio button “Ward Group” which will

display the facility specific/defined Ward Groups.

3. Select a Ward Group(s) add them to the box on the right by clicking the ‘add’ arrow or dragging and

dropping and then click ‘Filter Data’.

4. To view all patients again, click on the ‘Clear all filters’ icon

7. Finding an Empty Bed – Bed Mode

Why should I use this function?

This function of the Patient Flow Portal (PFP) Bed Board allows the user to evaluate how beds are

currently being utilised.

How to find an empty bed

1. On the PFP Bed Board, select the ‘Bed Mode’ tab.

2. To view empty bed availability, select ‘Vacant beds’ from the Primary view drop down list.

3. To view patients and beds, select ‘Patients & Beds’ from the Primary view drop down list.

4. The ‘Patient & Beds’ view will display which details the number and status of beds in a given ward

and how many are occupied by patients.

What do I do with this Information? Identifying which beds are open across an organisation can assist with demand and capacity planning by understanding how the organisation utilises its bed base. This information can also be used to identify the organisations tipping points for demand escalation.

Bed Definitions:

Available: Beds that are available for a patient to be admitted into – these can be occupied or empty.

Surge: Beds that can be made operational if required for short periods of time to manage capacity and demand issues or for specific initiatives e.g. winter funding, surgical wait list management. Closed: Physically available beds that are closed.

Unavailable: Open beds that are temporarily not available. They could be reserved or unavailable due to clinical, staffing or maintenance issues.

Over Capacity: More patients than bed capacity.

8. Requesting an Inter Hospital Transfer

Electronic Inter Hospital and Inter Ward Transfers

Inter hospital and inter-ward transfers initiated from the Patient List view will have most patient

information pre-populated, which reduces manual entry and risk of error. Patients will be removed from

transfer lists once the receiving hospital admits them onto their PAS.

How to request an Inter Hospital Transfer (IHT)

1. From the Patient List view, click on the ward the patient who requires the transfer is currently

admitted into to display all the patients in a list view.

2. In the ‘Actions’ column for the patient who requires the transfer, click on the ‘IHT’ button to display

the IHT Patient Transfer Request window.

3. Complete the remaining fields (ones marked with an “*” are

mandatory) and click on ‘Save’.

4. Click on the ‘Transfers’ tab to confirm the transfer is on the ‘Outgoing IHT’ list.

5. The status column will show when the transfer has been requested, confirmed, in progress and

completed.

What do I do with this Information? This process for requesting Inter Hospital Transfers can be used state-wide in all facilities. Through standardised practice, transfers will be more transparent with all relevant information communicated every time.

9. Searching for a Patient

Bed Board Search Patient Functionality

The Patient Flow Portal Bed Board now has the ability to search for any admitted patients within your

organisation or LHD.

Click on the ‘Magnifying Glass’ icon located on the top right hand side of the Bed Board screen.

This will open up the search window. Type in the patient’s First name, Surname or UID or MRN.

This information identifies Patients current location.

Double click on the Patients name to open up the Patient Information screen.

10.Populating a bed profile

Why is bed management done through the Patient Flow Portal (PFP) Bed Board?

Bed management in the PFP Bed Board provides all information in the one location. By populating a

profile once, it reduces the amount of manual data entry for ongoing operations.

How do you create a ward profile?

1. To create a bed profile for a given ward, click on the ‘Bed Management’ tab and then the ‘Ward

Profile’ tab.

2. Select the ward from the drop down list at the top of the window and click on ‘New Profile’.

3. Enter the name for the profile in the ‘Profile Name’ field and the date range for the profile in the

‘From’ and ‘To’ fields.

4. Set the occupancy by entering the ‘Capacity’, number of ‘Open’ and number of ‘Surge’ beds in the

relevant fields, then click on the ‘Set Occupancy’ button.

5. Save the ward profile by clicking on the ‘Save Profile’ button.

6. Go to the ‘Schedule’ tab where the bed profile for the next 14 days can be viewed and updated.

7. Select which status of beds you want to view from the ‘Display’ drop down list. Bed

status/availability can be edited on this view if the actual bed profile for a ward changes.

What do I do with this information? Monitoring your occupancy through the schedule will assist with capacity and demand planning by knowing your capacity. Additionally, by having a clear picture of beds, you can factor availability into your demand escalation plans by knowing tipping points.