How a Children’s Hospital Increased the Frequency of Discharge Communication with Primary Care Providers

​An academic children's hospital met and sustained its goal of attempting spoken discharge communication with the primary care providers (PCPs) of 80% of patients within seven days of discharge in pediatric medical services, reports an article in the February 2017 issue of the Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety. An interdisciplinary team with "intensive frontline provider involvement" was formed. The team used the Lean A3 tool, which is printed on A3 paper size (11 by 17 inches), to analyze the issue and plan the project. The team also identified root causes of discharge communication problems. The team decided that the resident would be responsible for communicating with PCPs unless told that the attending physician or fellow would do so.