Observation Units: Definition, History, Data, Financial Considerations, and Metrics

Abstract Observation units are dedicated units built to provide efficient protocol-based care to patients with well-defined diagnoses or presenting symptoms such as chest pain, asthma, and congestive heart failure. Only approximately one-third of US hospitals currently have an observation unit. The efficiency which results from use of such units may improve bed capacity in individual hospitals and also provide great national cost savings as care is delivered safely in less time with use of fewer resources. Starting a unit can be challenging and there is much to be considered when selecting a medical director for the unit, choosing the diagnoses suitable for a given unit, and deciding on metrics to help monitor the performance of an observation unit.
Source: Current Emergency and Hospital Medicine Reports - Category: Emergency Medicine Source Type: research