SHM Converge Scientific Abstract ePoster Gallery-Bridge the Gap; Insights on Discharge Summaries From Inpatient Clinicians

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The document emphasizes that discharge summaries are critical tools for communicating patient transitions of care, especially because clinicians often have only 1–5 minutes to review them. It compares findings from two multisite surveys: a 2019 survey of outpatient clinicians (463 responses, 21% response rate) and a 2022 survey of inpatient clinicians (534 responses, 31% response rate).<br /><br />Across both groups, the most highly valued discharge summary elements were:<br />1. Hospital course  <br />2. Discharge diagnoses  <br />3. Medication reconciliation  <br />4. Follow-up  <br /><br />The least valued components included:<br />1. Contact numbers  <br />2. Ancillary services  <br />3. Wound care  <br />4. Activity status  <br /><br />The purpose of the project is to gather input from all users of discharge summaries in order to develop an optimized, standardized template. The document also includes respondent breakdowns by role and specialty for the 2022 survey, showing broad participation from attending physicians, advance practice providers, residents, fellows, and multiple specialties such as hospital medicine, emergency medicine, internal medicine, and family medicine.<br /><br />Overall, the takeaway is that discharge summaries should prioritize concise, clinically essential information that supports safe handoffs and continuity of care.

Asset Subtitle

Aaron M. Silver

Meta Tag

Author List Aaron M. Silver, Abey K. Thomas, Christopher M. O'Donnell, Leigh Anne Goodman, Michael Burton, Pooja Rangan, Romil Chadha

Category Research

Concept Discharge Summary

Concept Hospital Course

Concept Discharge Diagnosis

Concept Medication Reconciliation

Concept Transitional Care

Distinguished Non-Finalist

Presenter Organization Oregon Health and Science University

Presenting Author Aaron M. Silver

Track Transitions of Care

Keywords

discharge summaries

transition of care

hospital course

discharge diagnoses

medication reconciliation

follow-up

standardized template

clinician survey

patient handoff

continuity of care

Discharge Summary

Hospital Course

Discharge Diagnosis

Medication Reconciliation

Transitional Care