164 The Impact of Hallway Placement on Emergency Department Operations for Discharged Patients with Abdominal Pain

Abstract

Emergency department (ED) crowding is a constant and relentless operational challenge facing hospitals across the country. In response to limited capacity many EDs increasingly care for patients in hallways to provide timely access to ED evaluation and facilitate ED flow. We sought to examine the impact of patient placement in the hallway on common ED throughput and quality measures for discharged abdominal pain patients.