title: Cancellations cut by three-fourths.
abstract: A critical pathway of lumbar discectomy has helped Blodgett Memorial Medical Center in Grand Rapids, MI, decrease cancellations by incorporating a preoperative telephone call one to two weeks before surgery. 50% of patients are going home in 23 hours or less. A handful of those are going home the same day as the procedure. The preoperative telephone call includes registration, education, instruction about laboratory tests to be done before the day of surgery, and even discharge planning.
mesh_terms: D019091:Critical Pathways / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards*; D017586:Diskectomy / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards*; D006764:Hospitals, Community / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae; D008824:Michigan; D017060:Patient Satisfaction