What are the barriers to timely discharge after elective orthopaedic surgery? A qualitative service evaluation

Abstract

Purpose: One patient every 6 days, on a single female ward, stays longer than required after elective orthopaedic surgery due to avoidable social reasons at a tertiary referral centre. Previous avoidable reasons offered include patients having no house keys, no food in the fridge or a family member is away. This results in annual estimated costs to the NHS of approximately £35,000 in excess bed days for one ward alone. Understanding delayed discharge from a user perspective can be useful. The aim was to explore staff and service users’ perceptions of a safe hospital discharge.