Closing the loop: best practices for cross-setting communication at ED discharge.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Quality Improvement
• Patient Safety
• Health Systems Research

Background:

• Lack of specific guidelines for emergency department (ED) to community care transitions.
• Need for standardized communication protocols to ensure continuity of care.
• Importance of effective patient handoffs in healthcare.

Purpose of the Study:

• Develop best practice guidelines for communication during patient care transitions from the ED.
• Establish community-wide expectations for clinician-to-clinician communication.
• Improve the quality and safety of care transitions.

Main Methods:

• Multistage collaborative quality improvement process.
• Review of medical literature, consensus statements, and national campaign materials.
• Gathering clinician preferences and vetting guidelines with stakeholders.

Main Results:

• Developed a set of best practices for ED care transitions.
• Guidelines include obtaining outpatient clinician information, sending summary clinical data, modified medication reconciliation, and enhanced patient education.
• Established measurable, community-wide expectations for cross-setting communication.

Conclusions:

• Best practices offer feasible standards for evaluating and improving ED patient transitions.
• Provides a framework for ED leaders to enhance community collaboration.
• Promotes improved communication and accountability across the care continuum.