title: Dissecting the hospital stay: a method for studying patient staging in hospitals.
abstract: A methodology is proposed and tested for the staging of patients thorugh a hospital stay. Measurements in a university-affiliated hospital and a community hospital in the Boston area showed similar staging patterns with about half of the sample having abnormal signs and symptoms while under treatment. The second-largest sample group in both hospitals, consisting of 11% of the sample, occupied beds although ready for discharge. The methodology indicated those patient-time units in the hospital which might be amenable to further reduction and gave upper bounds on that compression. Contrary to prior expectations, 90% of the patients sampled followed a well-defined sequence from admission to discharge with only 10% having complications of the admitting diagnosis, new diagnosis or iatrogenic illness.
mesh_terms: D001509:Bed Occupancy; D001900:Boston; D006745:Hospital Bed Capacity, 300 to 499; D006764:Hospitals, Community / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007902:Length of Stay; D010361:Patients / Q000145:classification; D011383:Progressive Patient Care