ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Emergency overcrowding is a problem in hospitals worldwide. The expansion of wards has limitations. Hospital administrative leaders are constantly looking for opportunities to improve the efficiency of resource use. METHODS: This is a care improvement study with a quasi-experimental design. We created a hospital discharge team (HDT) to solve the issues of prolonged hospital stays. The main interventions were active search and resolution of prolongation of stay and multi-disciplinary huddles. We developed strategies with different hospital units to expedite the processing of patients near discharge. Length of stay (LOS), morning hospital discharges, readmission rates, and bed usage were compared before (2018) and after (2019) HDT implementation. RESULTS: There was a reduction in the mean LOS of 1.8 days (95% confidence interval [CI] -0.9 to -2.6; p < .001). The rate of hospital discharges before noon increased by 7.0% (95% CI 4%-11%; p < .001). The readmission rate was similar between 2018 and 2019 (+0.7%; 95% CI -0.1% to 1.9%; p = .358). We observed higher bed turnover, with 0.5 more hospitalizations per bed per month (95% CI 0.1-0.7; p = .01; mean of 3.7 ± 0.3 in 2018 and 4.1 ± 0.3 in 2019). CONCLUSION: HDT brought benefits to our hospital, reducing the length of stay and increasing bed turnover. However, there is a need for a team focused on the project and support from managers to overcome resistance and integrate units until they are fully operational.
