Criteria-Led Discharge-Patient Safety and Satisfaction, Length of Stay, and Facilitators for Implementation: A Systematic Review Update.

Authors

Liz Lees-Deutsch, Emma Brangwin, Bridget O'Connell, Rosslyn Young, Agnieszka Lewko

Published in

Journal of nursing care quality. Aug 11, 2026. Epub Aug 11, 2026.

Abstract

Delayed patient discharge affects patient safety, care quality, and hospital flow. Criteria-led discharge (CLD) enables appropriately trained health care professionals to discharge selected patients against predefined clinical criteria, potentially improving timeliness.
The purpose of this updated systematic review was to assess outcomes including CLD safety, patient satisfaction, length of stay (LOS), and implementation factors.
A systematic review was conducted. CINAHL and Medline were searched from 2018 to 2025.
Thirteen studies spanning adult and pediatric settings were included. CLD was consistently safe when supported by clear criteria, protocols, and safety-netting; readmission findings were mixed. Most studies reported reduced LOS, earlier discharge, and improved flow. Evidence on patient satisfaction was limited. Key facilitators included staff training, organizational support, and integration of CLD into routine processes.
CLD is a safe intervention that improves discharge efficiency and LOS with growing applicability across nonelective pathways and potential scalability.

PMID:
42579621
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 12 Aug 2026.

Read full publication at:
Please sign in to see all details.

Stats

1-terrible, 9-excellent. How would you rate this publication? Sign in in to submit your rating.

Post a comment

You need to be signed in to post comments. You can sign in here.

Comments

There are no comments yet.