Joint Commission Revises Standards to Emphasize Importance of Patient Flow

The Joint Commission has revised its accreditation standards LD.04.03.11 and PC.01.01.01 to reflect an increased focus on the importance of patient flow in hospitals, states a February 4, 2013, Standards FAQ posted on the Joint Commission’s website. According to the Joint Commission, although the emergency department (ED) may be where a patient flow problem manifests in a hospital, it may not be the source of the problem. To account for this, elements of performance (EPs) were revised and developed to enhance patient safety by addressing the use of data and metrics to better manage patient flow as a hospital-wide concern, the safe provision of care for patients should boarding occur, and the mitigation of risks experienced by patients with psychiatric emergencies who are boarded in the ED. For standard LD.04.03.11, EPs 5, 7, and 8 were revised to better reflect current practices regarding the use of data and metrics in identifying, monitoring, managing, and improving issues in patient flow throughout the hospital.