Background: Hospitals around the country are facing patient flow issues. Late discharges on the inpatient floors are thought to contribute to overcrowding in the emergency department and increased evening admissions (Wertheimer, 2014). This can lead to decreased quality of care, patient satisfaction, and increased length of stay. Some hospitals have attempted to promote early discharges [...]

Background: Communication failures amongst interdisciplinary internal medicine (IM) teams occur often in the inpatient setting, which can inhibit mutual understanding of care plans, increase the potential for medical error, and contribute to patient dissatisfaction. Efforts to enhance interdisciplinary collaborative teamwork within inpatient IM teams highlighted a critical need to address concerns related to communication. Methods: [...]

Background: Interdisciplinary communication, quality improvment, and patient safety, are integral components to providing quality healthcare. Furthermore, the ACGME recognizes the importance of the learning and working environment, a culture of safety, and providing opportunities for learners to participate in interprofessional quality improvement activities which it designates as a core program requirement. At the University of [...]

Background: Communication between Hospital Medicine physician teams and interdisciplinary care providers (e.g. nurses, physical and occupational therapists, case managers) regarding disposition planning is often inconsistent, potentially delaying care and resulting in poor patient and provider experience. Prior studies demonstrate that sharing the estimated discharge date (EDD) early in a patient’s hospitalization can improve communication and [...]