by Julie Koenig, COO
BHG launched the “Say Yes” Challenge to cultivate a culture of open-access and walk-in service. Starting with 16 locations, we currently have 22 clinics participating in this pilot program which means increasing hours of operations and continually working to find creative ways to “say yes” to patients seeking treatment.
Aiken / Bessemer / Centennial / Chesapeake South / Clyde / Columbia, MO / Glen Allen / Kansas City / Kansas City North / Knoxville Bernard / Knoxville Citico / Lexington / Little Rock / Memphis Mid-Town / Memphis North / Memphis South / Nashville / New Orleans Downtown / New Orleans Westbank / North Denver / Overland Park / Paducah
Here’s what this means to you
Our call center team is here for you.
“Our objective is to get the patient in as soon as we can,” said Dorothy Goodwin, Call Center Manager. “We know that when someone works up the courage to call us, the clock is ticking. If we can’t help them get treatment within 24-48 hours, we’ve lost the opportunity to help. Our goal is to expand intake capacity to make sure everyone who wants treatment can get it within 48 hours. This program is showing strong results.”
Only one month in and early data shows the Challenge is working.
- Increase in walk-in traffic: 25 in February; 165 in March with 141 of those going to pilot clinics.
- Reduced wait time for appointment: overall, we’ve moved from 7 days to 4 days. The pilot clinics moved from 4 days to 2 days and the non-pilot clinics from 7 days to 5 days.
- Increase in admission: We saw an increase in the percent of patients admitted within 2 days. In February, we were at 24% and in March, we are at a 47%.
- 10 out of the 21 pilot clinics are at a 2 day or lower lag time.
“Patients [in the pilot clinics] are happy they can get same-day appointments. When they get the courage to call us, it’s time to jump through hoops to make it happen.”
If you want to participate in the “Say Yes” Challenge, contact Dorothy Goodwin at [email protected] or 214-365-6106 to learn about the requirements.
For quite some time, the New Orleans and Memphis Mid-Town treatment centers have been “saying yes” by taking walk-ins and same-day appointments. Operationally, we modeled the Challenge after these sites.
“We’re in the barrier-removal business,” said Natashia Cheatham, Regional Director of Operations. “We help create a place where we can proactively remove barriers. When patients get to our doors, we don’t want to create another barrier by being closed. Our job is when a patient shows up, we help them take the next steps.”
Cheatham said the New Orleans Downtown center had already built a reputation for taking walk-ins before the “Say Yes” Challenge and the call center began taking calls.
“People were already coming to us. We’ve added 100 lives to our center and have had to bring in additional providers,” said Cheatham. “We’ve hired DNPs who’ve worked in ERs, high-acuity and in-patient environments, and we now have on-site peer support specialists who are trained in emergency response. We want to mirror an ER setting in our Downtown clinic.”
Last year, the State Opioid Treatment Authority (SOTA) in Louisiana asked BHG to open a 24/7 clinic and provided $1 million to help make it happen. Cheatham also worked with SOTA to get bus passes for people with transportation issues.
For treatment centers that are not yet participating in the Challenge, Cheatham said “going the extra mile is literally helping patients in a life-or-death situation” and she encourages you to contact your SOTA and explore how you can expand your services with them, even if it’s small steps.
Our “Say Yes” Challenge is to encourage and inspire as many sites as possible to adopt this best practice of an open-access, walk-in culture. This means asking the right questions:
- What can you do in your facility to find those creative ways to “Say Yes” to patients seeking help?
- What can we do to improve our availability to support more admissions?
- If someone needs help and your program can’t accommodate them, where is the nearest facility that can do the admission and then refer the patient back to their preferred program for ongoing care?
Let’s do all that we can to “say yes” and not let these life-saving moments pass.