Background: Effective discharge planning requires early identification of patients’ post-acute care needs as well as potential barriers to placement. Housestaff receive little formal training on discharge planning and are instead expected to learn “on-the-go”. At the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs (WLAVA) Medical Center there exists many disposition options that aren’t available to our housestaff […]

Case Presentation: A 21‐month‐old previously healthy girl presented with 5 days of cough, rhinorrhea, and fever. One day prior to presentation, she also developed emesis and diarrhea, followed by a decrease in oral intake and urine output. On presentation, she had a temperature of 38.7°C, a respiratory rate of 60 breaths/minute, a pulse of 160 […]

Case Presentation: A 76‐year‐old white man with a medical history of Hashimoto's thyroiditis, atrial fibrillation, coronary artery disease and hypertension presented to the emergency department with clouding of consciousness for 1 day. His vital signs were stable. Chest and cardiovascular examination was normal. He was admitted for further workup, which revealed CBC and electrolytes to […]

Background: Hospitals emphasize early discharge to improve throughput. Interdisciplinary team members often report feeling rushed in the 24 hours before discharge, which may increase the likelihood of discharge errors and burnout for the team. Purpose: To identify obstacles preventing timely completion of discharge activities, improve reliability of the discharge process, improve staff experience, and decrease […]