A new study co-led by an expert from the University of Michigan Medical School examined emergency department boarding trends across 17 health systems. Key findings are reported in a press release.

Boarding refers to the time it takes for a patient to get a bed and start receiving inpatient care after it’s decided that they will be admitted to the hospital. The emergency medicine physicians who led this study make up the Research in Emergency Systems and Quality Using EHRs Network (RESQUE-NET).

The finding that stood out was how boarding times differed across the 56 analyzed hospitals. Specifically, 23% had a four-hour average boarding time, though many patients wait up to 24 hours. Longer wait times were commonly experienced by patients over 65, Medicare beneficiaries, and those with higher illness acuity. It is important to note that the four-hour average was based on the Joint Commission standard that recognizes emergency department boarding taking more than four hours as a critical patient safety issue. 

The researchers hope their findings will bring more attention to this topic and inspire additional research.