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Use of Hospital Capacity Command Centers to Improve Patient Flow and Safety: A Scoping Review.
J Patient Saf ; 18(6): e912-e921, 2022 09 01.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2005021
ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES:

Delayed emergency department (ED) and hospital patient throughput is recognized as a critical threat to patient safety. Increasingly, hospitals are investing significantly in deploying command centers, long used in airlines and the military, to proactively manage hospital-wide patient flow. This scoping review characterizes the evidence related to hospital capacity command centers (CCCs) and synthesizes current data regarding their implementation.

METHODS:

As no consensus definition exists for CCCs, we characterized them as units (i) involving interdisciplinary, permanently colocated teams, (ii) using real-time data, and (iii) managing 2 or more patient flow functions (e.g., bed management, transfers, discharge planning, etc.), to distinguish CCCs from transfer centers. We undertook a scoping review of the medical and gray literature published through April 2019 related to CCCs meeting these criteria.

RESULTS:

We identified 8 eligible articles (including 4 peer-reviewed studies) describing 7 CCCs of varying designs. The most common CCC outcome measures related to transfer volume (n = 5) and ED boarding (n = 4). Several CCCs also monitored patient-level clinical parameters. Although all articles reported performance improvements, heterogeneity in CCC design and evidence quality currently restricts generalizability of findings.

CONCLUSIONS:

Numerous anecdotal accounts suggest that CCCs are being widely deployed in an effort to improve hospital patient flow and safety, yet peer-reviewed evidence regarding their design and effectiveness is in its earliest stages. The costs, objectives, and growing deployment of CCCs merit an investment in rigorous research to better measure their processes and outcomes. We propose a standard definition, conceptual framework, research priorities, and reporting standards to guide future investigation of CCCs.
Subject(s)

Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Emergency Service, Hospital / Hospitals Type of study: Prognostic study / Reviews Limits: Humans Language: English Journal: J Patient Saf Journal subject: Health Services Year: 2022 Document Type: Article

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Emergency Service, Hospital / Hospitals Type of study: Prognostic study / Reviews Limits: Humans Language: English Journal: J Patient Saf Journal subject: Health Services Year: 2022 Document Type: Article