Case Study: Augusta University Health achieves $3.37M savings and improved patient flow with Cerner CareAware Patient Flow and Clairvia

Augusta University Health uses technology and centralized logistics to improve patient flow, communications and care

Augusta University Health (AU Health), a 632-bed academic health system, struggled with fragmented processes that left staff unable to track capacity, nursing resources or coordinate operations—resulting in patients held in the emergency department for days and discharges without assigned inpatient beds. The lack of a centralized way to view throughput and communicate across units created frustration and operational bottlenecks.

AU Health partnered with Cerner teams to build a centralized command center and implement CareAware Patient Flow for capacity management and Clairvia for workforce scheduling, using wall-mounted monitors to visualize real-time status. From December 2015 to June 2016 the changes drove $3.37 million in savings, reduced average inpatient length of stay (from 6.1 to 5.86 days in comparable periods), dramatically cut diversion hours (including two months of zero pediatric diversion by January 2017), and supported plans to add beds and a transfer center.

Augusta University Health

Laura Brower

VP and CNO