Improving Throughput for Patients Admitted From the Emergency Department: Implementation of a Standardized Report Process

Background: Inefficient emergency department to inpatient handoff processes can contribute to delayed care. Local Problem: The average emergency department length of stay for admitted patients and admission wait times at this institution were well above national averages, and a standard handoff process was lacking. Methods: Lean methodology was used to evaluate flow and identify opportunities for improvement. Interventions: Two tools were developed to standardize handoff. Results: Emergency department length of stay and admission wait times were not significantly improved following intervention implementation. However, patient transfer time decreased significantly (P
Source: Journal of Nursing Care Quality - Category: Nursing Tags: Articles Source Type: research