The impact of hospital discharge on inappropriate hospital stay

Abstract

Appropriate hospital stay should be effective, efficient and tailored to patient needs. Previous studies have found that on average 20 per cent of hospital stay is inappropriate. Within obstetrics, inappropriate hospital stay consists mostly of delays in hospital discharge. The specific goals of this study were to reduce inappropriate hospital stay by fine‐tuning patient logistics, increasing efficiency and providing more comfortable surroundings. New policies using strict discharge criteria were implemented. Total inappropriate hospital stay decreased from 13.3 to 7.2 per cent. The delay in discharge procedures halved. P‐charts showed a decrease in inappropriate hospital stay, indicating the current process to be stable. Concludes that a significant reduction in inappropriate hospital stay was found following the implementation of innovative hospital discharge policies, indicating greater efficiency and accessibility of hospital services.

Citation

Panis, L.J.G.G., Verheggen, F.W.S.M., Pop, P. and Prins, M.H. (2004), "The impact of hospital discharge on inappropriate hospital stay", International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 17 No. 4, pp. 189-193. https://doi.org/10.1108/09526860410541504