We are highlighting case studies created by Fellows who are participating in our Academy Fellows Program which focuses on leadership development for Administrative, Finance, Nurse, and Physician healthcare leaders. This month we are featuring Meredith's Action Project which she worked on as a part of the Fellowship Program.

Standardizing Length of Stay Metrics

Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center is home to the second largest (by square footage) emergency department in the U.S.—meaning capacity management and avoided diversion are top priorities. And while a new nine-story tower is set to open in April 2026, current space constraints made leaders feel added pressure to reduce length of stay (LOS) and optimize the existing space in the interim.

To improve LOS, Finance Fellow Meredith R. Bass, MBA worked with leadership across the system to take an inventory of all LOS metrics the system was tracking. They found that there were more than seven different metrics, each with their own intricacies, subpopulations and reporting.

Therefore, in an effort to improve performance and increase data transparency, she selected Geometric Mean Length of Stay as the primary metric. This allowed for national benchmarking with over 3,400 CMS IPPS hospitals across the country. In addition, the recognized carve outs were minimal as well and only exclude outliers for less than one day and outliers above 30 days.

Results

Through this standardization, the team was able to drive a:

• 4% year-over-year reduction in ALOS from FY 22 to FY 23

• 3% year-over-year reduction in ALOS from FY 23 to projected FY 24

• Reduction of 7,800 bed days

• 6% reduction of Emergency Department diversion

• Improved Leapfrog score to A

Nominations for THMA's 2025 Fellowship cohorts are now open and offer leadership development in six areas—administrative, finance, physician, nursing, informatics, and technology. If you are interested in learning more or nominating a healthcare leader, please reach out to LDPrograms@hmacademy.com.