Reference no: EM133879372

Question

One clinical client-focused quality measure currently analyzed in my practice location is hospital length of stay (LOS). Length of stay is a quality metric used by hospital systems to ensure efficient hospital management (Siddique et al., 2021). Hospital length of stay is client focused because it helps hospitals to optimize bed availability and staff efficiency. It also helps to decrease the risk of functional decline in patients resulting from a prolonged hospital stay (Siddique et al., 2021). Length of stay data is collected in the electronic health record. The data collected includes the patient's admission date and discharge date. In my practice location, the length of stay data is collected, analyzed and reported by hospital executive leadership. In my practice environment, length of stay data is critically evaluated by the hospital medical director, unit Nurse Practitioners, nursing management and the Case Management department to identify areas of improvement to reduce length of stay and facilitate discharges. All of these departments collectively apply data to meet the length of stay goals set forth by the health system. Advanced Practice Nurses face challenges when evaluating quality measures in the healthcare setting. APNs must often evaluate quality measures while managing large patient loads. This can interfere with the APNs ability to evaluate quality measures.