Length of stay  remains an easily measurable index of “efficiency” and is quoted as such in one of the most recent publications of the UK Department of Health NHS performance Indicators.

Unnecessary days in hospital may lead to increased hospital-acquired infections, falls, and increased costs for patients and healthcare systems. In addition, prolonged LOS may negatively affect both patient and staff experience. Delays in hospital discharge may be related to unnecessary waiting, poor organization of care, delays in decision-making, or difficulties related to discharge planning. Timely discharge of hospitalized patients can prevent patient harm, improve patient satisfaction and quality of life, and reduce costs.

 

Methods:

Data was collected prospectively from January 2021 to December 2022 . The LOS was calculated o monthly basis .Cerner was used as source of data.

 

New measures were implemented were..

1)Changing   the   discharge criteria according to patient current obstetric status.

2)Daily evening baby circumcision which helped in early discharge the next day morning

3)Evening round discharges.

4)Avoiding the admission of babies of GBS +ve mothers if they have received Intrapartum Antibiotic Prophylaxis.

5)Activation of bed crisis protocol when there is shortage of beds .

 

We aimed at reducing the LOS for post cesarean patients from 72 hrs to 48 hrs and for post vaginal delivery patients from 48hrs to 24 hrs.

 

Results:

Over all In 2021 the percentage was 53.70% for vaginal delivery and 85.04% for LSCS.In 2022 the percentage achieved is 71.72% for vaginal delivery and 90.85% for LSCS after implementing the new measures , which is well above the target and showed significant improvement in the service , patient flow and reduced bed crisis

 

 

Conclusion:

The new measures which were applied were effective in reducing the LOS of the postnatal patients which is reflected on patient satisfaction and reduced the hospital cost .

 

References:

1.Kelley Tipton, M.P.H. Brian F. Leas, M.S., M.A. Interventions To Decrease Hospital Length of Stay , Technical brief , number 40 , 2021

2.A Clarke , Length of in-hospital stay and its relationship to quality of care , Qual Saf Health Care 2002;11:209–210