Premium
Turning Over Patient Turnover: An Ethnographic Study of Admissions, Discharges, and Transfers
Author(s) -
Jennings Bonnie Mowinski,
Sandelowski Margarete,
Higgins Melinda K.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
research in nursing and health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1098-240X
pISSN - 0160-6891
DOI - 10.1002/nur.21565
Subject(s) - staffing , medicine , turnover , patient safety , nursing , medical record , work (physics) , medical emergency , family medicine , health care , mechanical engineering , management , engineering , economics , economic growth
The impact on nursing work of patient turnover (admissions, discharges, and transfers) became evident in an ethnographic study of turbulence. The patient turnover data were generated from extensive observations, 21 formal interviews, and a year of admission and discharge records on one medical and one surgical unit. Timing of turnover events on the two units differed, but on both units admissions typically interrupted workflow more than did discharges, clustered admissions were more disruptive than staggered admissions, and patient turnover during change of shift was more disruptive than during medication administration. Understanding the complexity of patient turnover will elucidate the work involved and improve the evidence base for nurse staffing, a key determinant of quality and safety of care. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Res Nurs Health 36: 554–556, 2013