Optimizing the Discharge Lounge Efficiency: A Quality Improvement Initiative With Innovative Approaches
Michaele Kennedy1, Lauren A Wolff, Joan Kennedy
1Author Affiliations : Patient Care Services, UPMC Presbyterian (Mss M. Kennedy, Wolff, Smith-Fortney), Capacity Management, UPMC Physician Operations & Professional Services (Ms J. Kennedy), and Acute & Tertiary Care Department, University of Pittsburgh (Dr Fennimore), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Background:
Patient discharge lounges have been used to improve hospital throughput for more than 30 years; however, their implementation has been inconsistent due to varying levels of engagement from providers, staff, and patients.
Local Problem:
A project team sought to reduce wait times for patients admitted from the emergency department (ED) by reducing discharge delays.
Methods:
This quality improvement initiative used a pre/post-implementation design.
Intervention:
Key strategies included selecting appropriate staff, identifying eligible patients, ensuring timely delivery of discharge medications, and interprofessional education. The discharge lounge was uniquely staffed by unlicensed patient care technicians.
Results:
Discharge lounge use increased by 12.5%. The time from written discharge order to the patient's departure from an inpatient unit decreased by 14 minutes, and ED wait time decreased by an average of 192 minutes.
Conclusion:
These innovative strategies yielded positive returns and may help other organizations to improve patient throughput.
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