Case Study Discussion Questions
A. How are patients prioritized for bed assignment? I do not believe this case study talks about prioritization of beds. The case study mentions that “bed assignment is made on the basis of level of care required, the doctor preferences in the choice of the nursing unit, and the scope of care supported by the nursing unit”. The hospital I work for has a bed control department and the members of the bed control departments are basically triage nurses. They use teletracking, a software that is used to request beds, keeps track of the room status, admission, transfers, and discharges. Bed assignments are based on individual patient care needs. Bed control prioritize beds based on level of care and which patient has been waiting the longest. If a patient is intubated in …show more content…
However, the factors that determine the placement of a patient into a bed could be their diagnosis, level of care, isolation, or does the patient need a monitor floor, is the patient at risk for fall and need to be closer to the nurse’s station, is the patient on a 23-hour observation. When I worked in a cardiac unit, whenever I got an admission from the ED I had to my homework. I searched for the patient’s vital signs, diagnosis, type of isolation required, age, mental status, and if the patient was at risk for fall. Many times the ED just wanted to get the patient to a room. But these patients sometimes are placed on the wrong floor or the wrong room. I had a patient with a low blood pressure who needed to go the intensive care unit; but, they did not have any bed so they sent it to the cardiac floor, needless to say the patient had to be transferred to the ICU. I understand the hospital wants patients to have the shortest waiting time; but patient safety and exceptional care are not provided when one dumps the patient into any open
A. How are patients prioritized for bed assignment? I do not believe this case study talks about prioritization of beds. The case study mentions that “bed assignment is made on the basis of level of care required, the doctor preferences in the choice of the nursing unit, and the scope of care supported by the nursing unit”. The hospital I work for has a bed control department and the members of the bed control departments are basically triage nurses. They use teletracking, a software that is used to request beds, keeps track of the room status, admission, transfers, and discharges. Bed assignments are based on individual patient care needs. Bed control prioritize beds based on level of care and which patient has been waiting the longest. If a patient is intubated in …show more content…
However, the factors that determine the placement of a patient into a bed could be their diagnosis, level of care, isolation, or does the patient need a monitor floor, is the patient at risk for fall and need to be closer to the nurse’s station, is the patient on a 23-hour observation. When I worked in a cardiac unit, whenever I got an admission from the ED I had to my homework. I searched for the patient’s vital signs, diagnosis, type of isolation required, age, mental status, and if the patient was at risk for fall. Many times the ED just wanted to get the patient to a room. But these patients sometimes are placed on the wrong floor or the wrong room. I had a patient with a low blood pressure who needed to go the intensive care unit; but, they did not have any bed so they sent it to the cardiac floor, needless to say the patient had to be transferred to the ICU. I understand the hospital wants patients to have the shortest waiting time; but patient safety and exceptional care are not provided when one dumps the patient into any open