At Healthy Roster, we've been studying the effectiveness of these hotlines in dealing with incidents that happen to workers on the job. Many companies we talk to have them in place for their employees, believing they are an efficient way to help treat those with injuries.
(Download the Nurse Hotline Comparison Infographic)
While every serious injury that happens in the workplace necessitates a 911 call, many companies are hoping to help treat non-emergencies with hotlines that are staffed by registered nurses.
However, we have found a few issues in the nursing hotline concept.
In our analysis, the first issue we uncovered is that there is not much feedback from users. After searching and searching, very few have positive reviews of their experience. So, it is very difficult to know how well these hotlines are working for employees.
Although, one comment really did stand out:
“When I actually used this perk, I was disappointed. The nurse was knowledgeable and kind––but she was unable to provide a definitive diagnosis or prescription. The nurse gave me some general advice, but recommended that I follow up with my primary care physician first. So at the end of the day, I was still going to have to deal with making an appointment, driving across town, waiting in a room full of sick people, and paying for treatment. No time saved. No money saved.”
One concern with the overall lack of feedback on nursing hotlines is that most people are being referred to their regular doctors. They are most likely calling in and answering questions asked by the RN.
According to a recent Healthdialog survey:
Nearly 12% of patients who call nurse hotlines, with a pre-intent of visiting an urgent care facility, were appropriately redirected to visit the ER instead. On the flip side, 69% of patients with pre-intent to visit the emergency room were appropriately redirected to a less emergent level of care like urgent care or their primary care physicians.
This calls to mind the second issue of a nursing hotline for incidents in the workplace — a visit to a nearby clinic or a primary care doctor means that a medical claim is being created.
And medical claims are expensive for employers.
But if employees can be triaged onsite and given advice for care for that specific injury - like sprains and strains or repetitive motion pain - by an expert in musculoskeletal disorders, many are able to return to work or can treat their injuries at home. And no medical claims are required.
The worker saves time, doesn't have to make appointments and travel and wait to see a specialist or go through physical therapy and miss work. The employer keeps that worker safe and healthy without having to spend an exorbitant amount of money on claims and doesn't lose that worker's productivity for a long period of time.
Are you looking to replace your nursing hotline for a more effective way to triage workers than a physician referral service?
Talk to Healthy Roster today — your CFO and your workers will be glad you did...