Creating a Flowchart

Introduction
The relevance of a flowchart cannot be overstated in seeking to define processes and diagrammatically represent certain activities with an aim of seeking better understanding of the said processes so as to either enhance efficiency or eliminate waste. In this text, a flowchart will be used for work analysis. More specifically, the flowchart will be used in the analysis of the discharge process with an aim of proposing changes for improvement.
Discussion
Discharge from hospital is one of the simple events that take place in my place of work. The simple flowchart (appendix 1) defines the discharge process. It is important to note, from the onset, that in basic terms, discharge has got to do with the various activities as well as undertakings associated with the release of a patient from the hospital setting upon the conclusion of a care or treatment episode conducted in a health care facility. In essence, the discharge process could be seen as the last activity of the patient treatment process at a specified healthcare facility. It should be noted that discharge could be for the purpose of transferring a patient to an appropriate care level or for purposes of releasing the patient to his or her family upon meaningful recovery.
At my workplace, discharge is not only a well-coordinated process, but also a patient-focused undertaking that is meant to facilitate the efficient discharge of patients from the facility. The flowchart clearly indicates this. The discharge process commences with a confirmation from the consultant that the patient is fit to be discharged from the facility. In this case, the consultant must complete a formal discharge summary letter. This is a step that could involve several health care professionals including DMO’s and residents/consultants. This is then followed by the preparation of the patient’s hospital charges. The discharge charges in this case are inclusive of the various costs incurred by the patient during their length of stay. The said charges could be inclusive of various medical fees and related medical care expenses for a wide range of procedures including, but not limited to, tests, surgical procedures, etc. This is a function performed by the billing department.
Upon preparation of the patient’s hospital charges, a final cumulative charge sheet is generated and immediately sent the cashier. The cashier then proceeds with the preparation of the final bill for processing. At this point, the bill could be settled in a number of ways. The patient could opt to pay in cash as per the bill advanced to them. Secondly, the bill could be settled as per the patient’s MOU with a certain corporate entity. Lastly, the bill could be settled as per the patient’s pre-existing insurance arrangement. Once the payment is verified by the billing department, the patient is issued with a checkout slip and the appropriate ward advised that the patient has cleared the bill. These are functions performed by the cashier.
Preceding the eventual discharge is the preparation of the discharge summary and the issuance of the relevant reports as well as medications to the patient. The discharge summary is prepared by the nursing department. Other departments not mentioned herein, but are nonetheless involved (albeit indirectly) in the discharge process include, but they are not limited to, the security department, the corporate department, the internal audit department, the house keeping department, as well as the patient care executive department.
To ensure that the workflow highlighted in this case is effective, there is need to not only assess but also evaluate its soundness. There are various metrics that could be used in this endeavor. The metric utilized in this case is the time taken for discharge. In my opinion, this is an effective indicator of not only patient satisfaction, but also the quality as well as efficiency of the workflow. At my place of work, deliberate measures have been taken over time with an intention of ensuring that delays are eliminated so as to see to it that the processing time is reduced. With a reduced process time, patients are likely to be more satisfied. Thus in the final analysis, the entire discharge process has overtime benefited from continuous improvement measures deliberately implemented to ensure that all delay points are rectified.
It should, however, be noted that more could be done with an intention of bringing about improvements to the workflow. For instance, there are various delay factors that are yet to be sufficiently addressed. The said factors are largely internal. One of the most prominent delay factors that ought to be attended to is the time taken by patients to wait for the generation of discharge summaries. I have also observed that the facility does not adequately document the discharge plan.
In the final analysis, it should be noted that the need for awareness of the flow of activity cannot be overstated. This is more so the case given that it comes in handy as a continuous improvement measure whereby concerns are identified and addressed promptly. In the long run, this tends to have a positive impact on the overall efficiency of the discharge process. It is important to note that with an efficient discharge process, patients are likely to be more satisfied and organizational costs associated with the said process are likely to be reduced. It should also be noted that an efficient discharge process could positively impact the efficiency of patient admission via the reduction of the waiting time associated with the same.
Appendices
Appendix 1: Patient Discharge Flowchart
Consultant confirms patient discharge
The patient’s hospital charges (cumulative) are prepared
Cashier receives final cumulative charge sheet and prepares/processes the final bill
Insurance
Cash
Organization
Payer Verifies
Check out slip is advanced to the patient
Discharge
The patient is given the discharge summary as well as all the relevant medications and reports