Error-proof your discharge planning process now.

Abstract

The new sentinel event policy from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations could lead to an explosion in the number of new medical malpractice suits leveled against hospitals and clinicians, experts say. One key target of the sentinel event policy is discharge planning. Because of the possibility of such increased scrutiny, it's more important than ever to streamline your discharge planning process and build in safeguards to keep catastrophic events from occurring. To ensure that discharge planning is coordinated effectively, begin the process on admission, and have a clinically trained case manager follow up to see that things are running smoothly, experts say. Such oversight is important because the more times information is transferred, the greater the possibility that errors will creep into the system.