SHM Converge Scientific Abstract ePoster Gallery-The Accelerated Discharge Program: Reducing Length of Stay With a Clinical Assistant-Led Throughput Intervention

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The document describes the “Accelerated Discharge Program,” a Clinical Assistant-led intervention designed to improve hospital throughput and reduce length of stay (LOS) at a 600-bed academic tertiary care center.<br /><br />The program addressed common discharge delays caused by poor coordination, unclear discharge expectations, and inconsistent communication about barriers to discharge. Each weekday, a Clinical Assistant contacted hospitalists to identify patients likely to go home the next day, ask about the main discharge barriers, and assist with completing needed tasks. These tasks included scheduling follow-up appointments, updating outpatient providers, clarifying pending imaging or rehab needs, confirming transportation, and coordinating discharge medications.<br /><br />The intervention was implemented on the Hospital Medicine Direct Care Service, which consists of 10 hospitalist-only teams supported by one Clinical Assistant. The comparator was the Hospital Medicine Teaching Service, which has resident/trainee teams and no Clinical Assistant support.<br /><br />Within 12 months, the program supported 938 unique encounters, representing 26% of discharges from the Direct Care Service. After implementation, LOS on the Direct Care Service decreased from 8.1 to 7.5 days, a reduction of 0.6 days. In contrast, the Teaching Service increased slightly from 7.4 to 7.5 days, a 0.1-day increase over the same period.<br /><br />Overall, the findings suggest that dedicated clinical administrative support for proactive discharge communication and task coordination can meaningfully improve discharge efficiency and reduce hospital LOS. The authors conclude that this structured, Clinical Assistant-led approach may help hospitalists discharge patients earlier by reducing avoidable delays and improving coordination of discharge-related needs.

Asset Subtitle

Brandon S. Scott

Meta Tag

Author List Brandon S. Scott, Connie Li, Michelle S. Mourad, Monisha Bhatia, Prashant Patel, Rachel Luke

Category Research

Concept Accelerated Discharge Program

Concept Length of Stay

Concept Discharge Coordination

Concept ED Throughput

Concept Clinical Assistant

Distinguished Non-Finalist

Presenter Organization University of California San Francisco

Presenting Author Brandon S. Scott

Track Value in Hospital Medicine

Keywords

accelerated discharge program

clinical assistant

hospital throughput

length of stay

discharge coordination

hospitalist

discharge delays

patient discharge

clinical administrative support

hospital medicine

Accelerated Discharge Program

Length of Stay

Discharge Coordination

ED Throughput

Clinical Assistant