7:15am – 8:00am
Conference Registration & Networking Breakfast

8:00am – 8:15am
Chairperson’s Opening Remarks 

8:15am – 9:00am
Transforming Discharge Planning: Enhancing Patient Flow and Resource Utilization
In today’s rapidly evolving healthcare landscape, efficient discharge planning and capacity management are crucial for hospitals and health systems to maintain operational excellence and financial sustainability. The increasing complexity of patient care, coupled with pressure to reduce costs and improve outcomes, has emphasized the need for agile and effective strategies to manage patient flow, reduce length of stay, and minimize readmissions. This presentation will explore innovative approaches to streamline patient transitions, optimize resource allocation, and enhance overall system performance.

Introduction: The Discharge Clinical Team (DCT) at Mayo Clinic Arizona has undergone significant transformation to improve patient flow and resource utilization. This presentation will highlight the progression of the DCT, focusing on the transition from a traditional discharge lounge to a mobile team approach.

Sam Castillo, MSN, RN
Supervisor-Clinical Support-Central Transport, Discharge Lounge, Clinical Informatics, Administrative Assistants
Mayo Clinic Arizona 

Charles Peworski, MSN, RN, CNML
Nurse Manager
Clinical Support and Occupational Health
Department of Nursing
Mayo Clinic Arizona 

9:00am – 9:45am
Navigating Throughput & Post Aute Discharge with Increasing MA Penetration
Today’s healthcare environment is tough.  Regulatory burdens continue to increase on both inpatient and post-acute providers, making discharges more difficult. In particular, the increased penetration of Medicare Advantage plans has put a stranglehold on throughput.  The downstream effects of this bottleneck increased boarders in the ED, extended length of stays, less than optimal discharges are unsustainable. To combat this, we have instituted a system wide interdisciplinary process of preauthorization reviews to help address these discharge difficulties.  These processes will be explained and discussed.

Stephen Rees, MD
Medical Director, Post Acute & Transitional Care
Ochsner Health Network 

9:45am – 10:15am
Networking & Refreshments Break 

10:15am – 11:00am
Mastering the Art of Bed Management: Strategies for Maximizing Throughput
Examine proven techniques for optimizing bed utilization and enhancing patient flow. This session covers innovative approaches to bed assignment, real-time capacity tracking and demand forecasting. Participants will hear about successful patient flow and bed management strategies and their impact on hospital performance metrics.

Candace Kravetz, MSN , RN, CMS-RN, NE-BC
Manager Clinical Administrators/Capacity & Transfer Management Center
WakeMed Health and Hospitals 

Marcy van Schagen, MSN, RN, CNML
Director System Capacity and Patient Placement
WakeMed Health and Hospitals 

11:00am – 11:45am
Building a Culture of Continuous Improvement in Discharge Planning
Discover how to foster a culture of ongoing innovation and improvement in your organization’s discharge planning processes. This session explores change management strategies, staff engagement techniques and performance measurement frameworks. Attendees will learn how to implement and sustain a culture of excellence in patient transitions. The session will also delve into the role of leadership in driving and supporting continuous improvement initiatives across all levels of the organization.

• Strategies for overcoming resistance to change and gaining buy-in from stakeholders
• Techniques for empowering frontline staff to identify and implement process improvements
• Methods for creating a feedback loop that drives ongoing refinement of discharge processes

Jodi Beachy, RN, BSN
Director – Logistics and Patient Throughput
Sarasota Memorial Health Care System 

11:45am – 12:15pm
People, Process & Technology: Hardwiring Patient Flow – The OhioHealth Experience
Like many health systems, OhioHealth struggled with prolonged LOS, ED boarding and limited inpatient capacity.  Learn how they took a people and process first approach, then used technology to embed patient flow best practice into their existing workflows.  Partnering with Qventus – a real-time AI automation platform for hospital operations – they reduced excess days by 17% and decreased ED boarding by 15%, while at the same time reducing manual burden on their teams, increasing patient volumes and improving throughput.

Jason Cohen, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Qventus 

Chelsea Zigan, MBA, RN, NEA-BC
Director of Nursing, General Medicine, Surgical Oncology and Orthopedics
Grant Medical Center, OhioHealth

12:15pm – 1:15pm
Luncheon 

1:15pm – 2:00pm
Streamlining Care Transitions: A Multidisciplinary Approach
Explore strategies for breaking down silos and fostering collaboration across departments to enhance care transitions. This session examines successful models for integrating various healthcare professionals in the discharge planning process, from admission to post-acute care. Discover how a coordinated approach can lead to improved patient outcomes, reduced readmissions and increased operational efficiency.

Cheri Lattimer, RN, BSN
Executive Director
National Transitions of Care Coalition 

2:00pm – 3:00pm
Panel: Navigating the Complexities of Post-Acute Care Partnerships
Join industry experts as they discuss the challenges and opportunities in developing effective post-acute care partnerships. This panel will explore strategies for:

• Evaluating and selecting post-acute care providers
• Establishing clear communication channels and protocols
• Aligning incentives and goals across the care continuum
• Measuring and improving partnership performance
• Addressing regulatory considerations in post-acute care transitions

Panelists:

Jan Ernest MSN, RN, NEA-BC
Executive Director, Integrated Care Systems
Center for Clinical Excellence
BJC Healthcare 

Stephen Rees, MD
Medical Director, Post Acute & Transitional Care
Ochsner Health Network

Iqbal Shariff, MBA
Chief Executive Officer
Best Home Healthcare Network 

3:00pm – 3:30pm
Networking & Refreshments Break 

3:30pm – 4:15pm
Standardizing Interdisciplinary Rounds: Enhancing Post-Acute Care Transitions
This session explores the development and implementation of a standardized system for interdisciplinary rounds that improves transitions to post-acute care settings. Drawing from real-world experience, attendees will learn practical strategies for creating consistent communication protocols, defining team member roles and establishing accountability frameworks that bridge hospital and post-acute care environments. Discover how a structured approach to interdisciplinary collaboration can reduce readmissions, improve patient outcomes and increase operational efficiency while addressing common barriers to effective care transitions.

Key takeaways:
– Framework for standardizing interdisciplinary rounds across multiple care settings
– Methods for defining clear role expectations and accountability in the transition process
– Strategies for measuring success and driving continuous improvement in care transitions
– Approaches to overcome common implementation challenges and resistance to change

Jan Ernest MSN, RN, NEA-BC
Executive Director, Integrated Care Systems
Center for Clinical Excellence
BJC Healthcare 

4:15-5:00pm
Optimizing Discharge Planning for Complex Patient Populations
Delve into the unique challenges and solutions for managing discharges among high-risk patient groups.
This session focuses on tailored strategies for populations such as elderly patients, complex medical conditions, and patients with health related social needs.  Discover how targeted approaches can improve outcomes and significantly reduce readmissions for these vulnerable populations.

Mary Noli Pilkington, MSN, RN CCM
Senior System Director, Care Coordination and Clinical Social Work
UCLA Health

5:00pm
End of Day One

7:15am – 8:00am
Networking Breakfast 

8:00am – 8:15am
Chairperson’s Recap 

8:15am – 9:00am
Optimizing Hospital Throughput: The Impact of a Discharge Lounge on Capacity Metrics
Efficient patient flow is critical to optimizing hospital operations, reducing emergency department overcrowding, and improving patient satisfaction. A discharge lounge serves as a designated space for patients who have been medically cleared for discharge but are awaiting transportation, medical equipment deliveries, or prescriptions. This initiative alleviates bed occupancy constraints, enabling quicker bed turnover and enhancing capacity metrics such as length of stay, emergency department boarding times, and overall hospital throughput.This presentation explores the implementation of a discharge lounge as a strategic solution to improve hospital efficiency. Key discussion points include workflow integration, patient eligibility criteria, staffing considerations, and data-driven outcomes. Real-world applications will demonstrate how discharge lounges enhance operational efficiency, reduce bottlenecks, and contribute to improved patient care delivery. Attendees will gain insights into best practices for implementing a discharge lounge and strategies to maximize its impact on hospital capacity metrics.

Adelaide Armstrong, BSN, RN
Discharge Coordinator
Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West 

Jeannie Bennett, MBA, BSN, RN
Throughput Manager
Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West 

9:00am – 9:45am
Data-Driven Decision Making for Capacity Management
Unlock the potential of your organization’s data to drive informed capacity management decisions. This session explores advanced analytics techniques, dashboarding tools and performance metrics essential for optimizing patient flow. Learn how to leverage data insights to predict demand, allocate resources effectively and improve overall operational efficiency.

Benjamin Dangerfield, DO
Medical Director, Arizona Operations Command Center
Consultant, Division of Hospital Internal Medicine
Mayo Clinic 

9:45am – 10:15am
Networking & Refreshments Break 

10:15am – 11:00am
Optimizing Multidisciplinary Care Teams for Enhanced Patient Flow
In this insightful presentation, discover how strategic deployment of specialized care transition teams can dramatically improve hospital throughput when patients face complex discharge barriers. The speaker will share innovative staffing models that break down silos between departments and accelerate care transitions. Learn about structuring their teams, defining key roles and establishing clear accountability frameworks to overcome common discharge challenges. 

Carissa J. Tyo, MD, FACEP
Medical Director, Clinical Decision Unit
Medical Director, Care Management and Physician Advisors
University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System 

11:00am – 11:45am

Barbara Farrell, MBA, BSN, RN, CCM
Director, Integrated Case Management
Sarasota Memorial Healthcare System

12:00pm
Conference Concludes

12:00pm – 2:00pm
Workshop: Developing a Comprehensive Discharge Planning Strategy for Your Organization

This interactive workshop guides participants through the process of creating a tailored, comprehensive discharge planning strategy. Attendees will engage in hands-on exercises, group discussions, and scenario planning to develop actionable plans for their organizations. The session will cover key aspects of strategy development, implementation challenges, and performance measurement.

Learning objectives:

• Assess your organization’s current discharge planning processes and identify areas for improvement.
• Develop a structured approach to aligning discharge planning with overall organizational goals.
• Create a roadmap for implementing new technologies and optimizing existing technologies while optimizing processes to enhance discharge efficiency.
• Design key performance indicators to measure and track the success of your discharge planning strategy that map to your organization’s KPIs.

Mark Williams
Principal
Artistry Consulting