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Sponsored by: Trinity Health Of New England
March 15, 2023

Trinity Health Of New England: Connecting Patients Directly to Care

Y. Paul Moy, M.D., Director of Urology and Men’s Health Institute, Trinity Health Of New England

Kidney stones are one of the most common urological medical conditions with the potential to become one of the most painful very quickly, often sending patients straight to the emergency room. But the experts at Trinity Health Of New England say they knew there had to be a better way to connect patients with the care they need. Now, they’ve developed the new Stone Program, streamlining the patient-to-physician process, and allowing some patients to skip that ED visit altogether. In a conversation with Dr. Y. Paul Moy, Trinity Health Of New England’s Director of Urology and Men’s Health Institute, we discuss how this is just one offering from a full spectrum of urology services his team offers.

Q: What are the most common types of health issues you treat in the field of urology?

A: Our experts treat a range of conditions such as urinary tract issues, incontinence, inability to void, and kidney stones. Many of these issues are not talked about often since they are intimate issues but are very common occurrences. Kidney stones in particular can be quite prevalent, affecting one in 11 people in their lifetime. A kidney stone is a hard object made from minerals and salts that form inside your kidneys. When there is too much waste and not enough liquid, crystals begin to form. Many times, kidney stones can be prevented with good hydration and dietary changes, even if a patient is predisposed to kidney stones. But when they form, kidney stones can cause blockages and extreme pain.

Q: At Trinity Health Of New England you are taking a unique approach to caring for patients with kidney stones. Can you explain more about your new Stone Program?

A: The severe pain from a kidney stone can send a patient straight to the Emergency Department seeking care. While very painful, for most patients, kidney stones are non-life threatening so they will be discharged with the recommendation that they follow up with a Urologist for further treatment. In some cases, patients don’t follow up, perhaps because they don’t have an established Urologist, or they may need to wait to get in for an appointment. Some Urologists have a months-long wait for an appointment right now. But with our Stone Program, our Nurse Navigator connects with the patient as they get discharged from the ED. The Nurse Navigator helps make a next-day appointment with one of our highly rated Urologists and guides them through the process. Usually, they’re able to come to see one of our physicians the next morning. The team will check on their pain, come up with a plan, and if need be, take them right back to the OR for a procedure. One of the most common procedures uses sound waves to break up bigger stones into smaller ones that can be passed with far less pain.

Q: How does a program like this one benefit the patient?

A: The patient can focus solely on getting better, not on finding a doctor or deciding the right treatment. Kidney stones are really high up on the pain scale. You can imagine the stress and anxiety when you don’t know when the next pain attack is going to happen and when you’re going to get the proper care. Patient experience is one of our number one goals, and making health care easy is our job. Early treatment and following a prescribed plan can help alleviate pain and discomfort, speed up recovery, reduce the risk of recurrence, minimize missed workdays, and lower the risk of infection and kidney damage. Some patients may even realize they have a kidney stone before the pain hits, and don’t want to have to go to the Emergency Department. In this case, they can call the phone number for the nurse navigator and be seen by a Urologist within 24 hours without having to go to the ED. We utilize a multidisciplinary team including Urologists, Nephrologists, Dietitians, and Radiologists to get all this done. This team approach helps to eliminate any fragmentation in care, and specialists can ensure the process is streamlined, coordinated, and complete.

To talk to the Stone Program Nurse Navigator or to learn more, call (860)707-3280.

www.trinityhealthofne.org/stone