Grant: Operating Grant

Overcrowding is a significant problem in Canadian hospitals, and has negative effects on both the quality of care received by patients and on the costs to the healthcare system. Research has shown that improving the efficiency of hospital care by standardizing the way in which patient care is delivered can help to reduce hospital overcrowding. On the other hand, allowing smaller subgroups within an organization to customize processes to suit local practices can also be beneficial. Between 2013 and 2015, a provincial initiative to improve the efficiency of hospital care, including planning for patient discharges, will be implemented in seven Alberta hospitals; these hospitals are organized in geographic zones. The purpose of this study is to explore the factors related to implementation that lead to greater use of this discharge process. The results of this study will be useful for future similar projects in Alberta hospitals, and may inform other healthcare organizations that are undertaking large scale improvement initiatives.