The Effect of Patient Discharge From the Maternal and Fetal Medicine Unit With Receiving a Discharge Letter Later Using the Apollo App on Discharge Data, Safety and Patient Satisfaction

The Baruch Padeh Medical Center, Poriya140 enrolled

Overview

Women admitted to the maternal and fetal medicine unit are often discharged after a short hospital stay. The routine work in the department is prioritized such that the discharge letter are written. In the last year the Apollo mobile application (app) was introduced. It contains general information on the medical center and the maternal and fetal unit department as well as the medical records, laboratory results and summary and discharge letters. The Apollo app is used in the maternal and fetal unit in the discharge process so the patient can receive the discharge letter in the app and does not need to wait until the discharge letter is written. It is not known whether this process is more effective than the regular discharge process and patients' satisfaction was not assessed previously. In the present study we will compare discharge data, satisfaction and safety of discharging using the Apollo app versus the routine process.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Masking

NONE

Enrollment

140

Conditions

Patient Satisfaction Health Care Utilization

Interventions

Eligibility

Sex: FEMALEMin age: 18 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Women who are admitted to the maternal and fetal medicine unit with the intention to be discharged before delivery * 18 years old and older * Consent to participate * Owner of a smart phone * Consent to download the Apollo app Exclusion Criteria: * Delivery during her admission * Doesn't own a smart phone * Refusal to download to Apollo app * Refusal to participate

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

The mean time needed from discharge decision until the actual discharge

Time frame: up to 24 hours from discharge decision

Secondary Outcomes

Satisfaction rate from the discharge method

Satisfaction rate from the discharge method assessment using a questionnaire

Time frame: Within a week following discharge from the department

The rate of participants with any technical difficulties to receive the discharge letter and reasons

The rate of participants with any technical difficulties to receive the discharge letter and reasons using a questionnaire

Time frame: Within a week following discharge from the department using a questionnaire

The rate of participants with missed information that required the patient to seek medical help

The rate of participants with missed information that required the patient to seek medical help using a questionnaire