Improving the Hospital Discharge Process with Six Sigma Methods

This article describes the application of a five-phase Six Sigma define, measure, analyze, improve, and control (DMAIC) approach to streamline patient discharge at a community hospital. Within the context of the five phases, the team applied statistical process control (SPC) charting, process mapping, Pareto charting, and cause-and-effect matrices to make decisions. The findings suggested that focusing on physician preparation for discharge order writing would have the greatest impact. A significant reduction in the average discharge time from 3.3 to 2.8 h was realized (p = 0.06) and missing chart data was reduced by 62%.