Slide Presentation of the 2007 Annual Meeting of AHRQ

Discharge Information

Notes:

These hospitals have done an excellent job in improving their results on Discharge Information questions.

Several hospitals have created brightly colored folders for discharge instructions. This hospital chose to use their logo colors but notice how they have incorporated the key words from the survey right onto the design of the folder. "Always providing excellent care" and "Discharge instructions including Medication Side Effect Information."

The other example uses a purchased software to provide patients with written discharge information and key words used by nurses and case managers include "we want you to have this written information about symptoms to look for when you go home." Of course they use all the other strategies to help a patient prepare for discharge including connecting with the patient as a "person." The nurses are very good about asking the patients to "tell me a little about the person who will be helping you at home."