BHA 320 SLP4 HEALTHCARE OPERATIONS Health, Medicine, Nursing Essay

BHA 320 SLP4 HEALTHCARE OPERATIONS
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Problem 1: Too many avoidable patient days
In healthcare, avoidable days mean barriers that prolong patients stay in hospital when they are medically ready to go home. Overstaying in hospitals is harmful to patients because of unnecessary waiting and the increased risk of being infected with healthcare –r elated infections. Lack of proper communication and lack of resources are cited as the main reasons why there are many avoidable patient days. According to Krell (2017), poor communication among healthcare providers and patients in the US leads up to more than 10,000 avoidable patient days per month. Poor communication in healthcare organization can affect the manner in which nurses and other healthcare professionals deliver their services to the patients. Poor communication between nurses and patients can cause misunderstanding about medication. This results to poor health outcomes of the patients and this is very dangerous to the patients. On the other hand, lack of resources involves the lack of transportation means and the equipment needed to arrange for home care after the discharge. In circumstances when patients can fail to access transportation, they can be forced to wait for medical emergencies so that they can see a doctor. For example, people with disabilities can be forced to use public means of transport or wait until they are seriously sock so that they can call an ambulance.
The above reasons for too many avoidable patient days imply that hospitals should adhere to IOM’s recommendation of shared knowledge and the free flow of information. This recommendation implies that patients should have access to scientific and personal information without delay or any form of restriction. Therefore, physicians should notify patients of their discharge immediately while any problem in acquiring the resources needed to discharge a patient should also be shared.
Possible solutions to too many avoidable patient days
While enhancing communication between physicians and patients during the discharge process helps reduce avoidable patient days, this paper recommends the review of patients’ population in the morning and evening as a way of reducing avoidable patient days.
Action plan
Goal: Reduce the number of avoidable patient days by 50% in 1 month by reviewing the number of patients each morning and evening.
Steps to be followed:
* Record the number of patients’ in the hospital in the morning
* Gather data from physicians on which patients will be discharged
* Communicate to the patients of their discharge process
* Ascertain that the discha...