Article ID: 2023-0034
Objective: Although bed transfers, which represent patient transfers within a ward, are common, we know little about how they should be managed. This study aimed to identify annual trends in bed transfers and evaluate the influence of patient inflow, outflow, and bed occupancy rate on the frequency of bed transfers. Methods: Using an exploratory observational design, we analyzed the medical data of four wards in a single hospital. The data were obtained from November 2017 to November 2018 and included the numbers of admissions, discharges, transfers into and from wards, inter-room transfers, intra-room transfers, and inpatient admissions. Admissions and transfers to wards were categorized as patient inflows. Discharges and transfers from the wards were categorized as patient outflows. Inter-room and intra-room transfers were categorized as bed transfers. Descriptive statistics were calculated to confirm the trends in the number of bed transfers. Autocorrelations for each variable and cross-correlations between bed transfers and each variable were examined. Multiple regression analysis based on an autoregressive model of order 1 and a non-time-series model was conducted, with the dependent variable being the number of bed transfers. Results: In winter, bed transfer, patient inflow, and beds occupancy were higher. We found that patient inflow had a significant effect on bed transfer. Conclusions: Bed transfers could be partially predicted by monitoring trends in patient inflow. When the number of bed transfers is high, appropriate staffing is necessary to assign patients to suitable beds by monitoring changes in their conditions.
