Enhanced Discharge Bundles to Reduce Length of Stay

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Hospital Operations
• Patient Flow Optimization

Background:

• Length of stay (LOS) is a key metric for hospital resource management.
• A multidisciplinary task force was formed to enhance discharge planning and patient throughput.
• The goal was to implement a structured discharge process within an academic hospital setting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of a multidisciplinary discharge planning intervention on inpatient length of stay.
• To assess changes in process, outcome, and balancing measures post-intervention.
• To determine the effectiveness of enhanced discharge support in a hospital medicine group.

Main Methods:

• Interventions were implemented between January and June 2023.
• Inpatient LOS and other metrics were compared between pre-intervention (July-December 2022) and post-intervention (July-December 2023) periods.
• Patient demographics and clinical characteristics were adjusted for confounding factors.

Main Results:

• Mean inpatient LOS decreased from 6.5 days to 5.8 days post-intervention.
• A statistically significant reduction of 0.56 days in LOS was observed (p = .019).
• No significant impact was found on 30-day all-cause readmissions or emergency department visits.

Conclusions:

• A multidisciplinary discharge bundle, with case management and documentation enhancements, shows promise in reducing LOS.
• The approach facilitates discharge communication and coordination.
• Future plans include scaling the intervention to other clinical areas and improving care progression and emergency department throughput.