Standardized Discharge Planning Tool Leads to Earlier Discharges and Fewer Readmissions.

Background: In an inpatient setting, aspects of discharge planning are often left to the provider's memory, leading to errors, inefficiencies, and avoidable costs.

Methods: A multidisciplinary team of oncology practitioners used process improvement methodologies to redesign the discharge planning process.

Interventions: The primary intervention was an evidence-based discharge planning tool, called the discharge navigator, used from admission through discharge.