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Department Now > Discharge Situation Report

See whether Emergency Department discharges are keeping pace with arrivals so you can identify emerging pressure and act early to maintain patient flow.

Location in SystemView: SystemView > Explore > Emergency Department > Department Now > Discharge Situation Report

In this article:

What it is

The Discharge Situation Report provides a near real-time view of Emergency Department discharges compared with what is required to maintain patient flow. It combines arrivals, occupancy, and discharge activity to highlight hourly trends, shortfalls, and upcoming discharge needs across the day.

This component is designed to support time-critical ED operational awareness by showing how well outflow is keeping up with inflow.


Why it matters

ED crowding often emerges when discharges fall behind arrivals.

When discharges fall behind arrivals, pressure can build quickly, increasing crowding and risk. This component helps teams move from reactive escalation to earlier awareness by:

  • Showing whether discharge activity is keeping pace with arrivals hour by hour

  • Highlighting emerging discharge shortfalls before congestion escalates

  • Providing historical context to understand what is typical for a similar day

  • Supporting shared situational awareness between ED, patient flow, and inpatient teams

How to use it

Filter to focus your view

Use the filters to tailor the component to the ED areas relevant to your role:

  • Area Type: Filter to Main or other mapped ED area types.

  • Area: Select one or more ED areas such as Triage, Acute, or Minors.

Monitor discharge pressure and flow balance

Tile name What it shows
Department Overview A snapshot of today’s ED status, including current patients, arrivals so far, expected arrivals in the next hour, today’s NEAT/ELOS or PET performance, and current ED occupancy. This helps you spot early signs of pressure.
Presentations by Arrival Hour The number of people arriving to ED each hour today. Supporting trendlines show the average expected arrivals for a similar day, along with higher and lower historical ranges, helping you see when demand is above or below typical patterns.
Total Patients in ED by Time The total number of patients in ED for each hour of the day, showing how overall occupancy is changing. Supporting trendlines provide historical context, including the average expected occupancy for a similar day, as well as upper and lower ranges based on the busiest and least busy historical days.
Department Departures Overview A summary of key discharge and departure metrics over the past 24 hours, including actual departures, required departures to maintain flow, variance, and the number of patients awaiting inpatient admission.
Discharges vs. Required by Discharge Hour Actual ED discharges by hour compared with the number of discharges required to maintain patient flow. Historical context shows what is typical for a similar day, highlighting hours where discharge activity is falling behind and shortfalls are emerging. The chart also indicates how many discharges are required over the next four hours when a discharge shortfall exists.

Cumulative Discharges vs. Cumulative Required Discharges to Maintain Flow by Hour

 A cumulative view comparing total discharges with the cumulative number required across the day. This highlights whether discharge shortfalls are being recovered or continuing to build, alongside the number of patients currently waiting for inpatient admission.

 

How it works

The Discharge Situation Report uses arrival, discharge, and occupancy data from local ED source systems and refreshes on a rolling basis throughout the day. 

Component logic overview

At a high level:

  • Arrivals and discharges are tracked hour by hour across a rolling 24-hour window.

  • The level of discharging required to maintain flow is inferred from recent arrival patterns and historical behaviour for similar days.

  • Historical trends provide context to show whether current performance is within, above, or below what is typically observed.

The component is intended to support interpretation and discussion, rather than define targets or prescribe actions.

How it helps you

  • Early identification of discharge pressure: See shortfalls before crowding escalates.

  • Improved flow conversations: Support clearer, data-informed discussions with patient flow and inpatient teams.

  • Better timing awareness: Understand when discharge performance tends to lag during the day.

  • Shared situational view: Align ED operational awareness around inflow, outflow, and occupancy.

Best practices

How often should I use it

What to do How often Who should do it Why it helps
Review discharge vs. required trends Throughout the shift Nurse in Charge, Flow Coordinator Supports early identification of discharge pressure and timely escalation.
Check cumulative discharge position Several times per shift ED leadership, Patient Flow leads Helps track whether shortfalls are being recovered as the day progresses.
Use alongside arrivals and occupancy During peak periods ED operational leads Provides context to understand whether pressure is driven by inflow, outflow, or both.

Pair with these components and features

Tips for success

  • Focus on patterns across multiple hours rather than reacting to a single data point.

  • Review the required discharges for each hour to understand when discharge effort needs to increase to keep pace with arrivals and reduce the risk of downstream pressure.

  • Use the cumulative view to understand whether earlier discharge gaps are being recovered.

  • Combine discharge insights with arrival peaks to anticipate upcoming pressure.

  • Use the component to support coordination, not as a performance scorecard.

Want a detailed breakdown?

If you’d like a more detailed look at every filter, chart, and tile in this component, you can download the Discharge Situation Report Guide below.

📎 Download: Emergency Department > Department Now > Discharge Situation Report Guide

❔FAQs 

Q. What does “required discharges” mean in this component?
A. Required discharges indicate the level of discharging needed to maintain patient flow, inferred from recent arrival patterns. Hourly arrival volumes are used as a proxy for discharge pressure, with historical context from similar days shown (based on the past two years) to indicate what is typical for that time and setting.

Q. Does this apply to all ED areas?
A. The view reflects the Area Type and Area filters selected. Ensure these match the ED areas relevant to your role.