---
title: "National Medical Measures to Reveal Inpatient Delays and Ward Flow in Australia"
id: "pubmed-42547057"
canonical_url: "https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/pubmed-42547057"
content_type: "clinical_feed_article"
specialty: "Pharmacology"
source_name: "PubMed / NCBI"
source_url: "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/"
doi: "10.1071/AH26114"
published_at: "2026-09-03T00:00:00.000Z"
evidence_level: "Journal Article"
license: "CC-BY-NC-4.0 / Informational Use"
---
# National Medical Measures to Reveal Inpatient Delays and Ward Flow in Australia
## Provenance & Clinical Metadata
- **Canonical URL:** https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/pubmed-42547057
- **Specialty:** [Pharmacology](https://medichelpline.com/clinical-feed/pharmacology.md)
- **Primary Source:** PubMed / NCBI
- **Source URL:** [Original Journal Publication](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/)
- **DOI:** [10.1071/AH26114](https://doi.org/10.1071%2FAH26114)
- **Published At:** 2026-09-03T00:00:00.000Z
- **Evidence Rating:** Journal Article
## Executive GIST (TL;DR)
- Australia's current hospital performance framework measures **emergency department throughput** and **elective surgery waiting times**, but does not track the inpatient journey, leaving many inpatient delays unseen. - Older Australian patients commonly experience these invisible delays during their acute inpatient episode; the Perspective highlights that ward-level delays are not captured by national indicators. - The author proposes introducing **National Medical Measures**, defined as simple **ward-level flow indicators**, to make delay patterns visible across the inpatient stay. - The **National Health Reform Agreement Addendum 2026-2031** requires Health Ministers to develop performance indicators for long-stay patients and cross-sector interfaces; this creates a policy window to include ward-flow measurement. - Implementing ward-level measures would provide national visibility of **inpatient delays** for the first time and establish baseline evidence to guide earlier clinical intervention. - Such measures could support future performance target setting and inform capacity planning across hospitals and systems. - The article frames the proposal as a Perspective rather than empirical research; specific indicator definitions, measurement methods, or implementation steps were not reported in the source abstract. - Keywords emphasized in the article include **bed block**, **delayed discharge/delayed transfer of care**, **length of stay**, **hospital patient flow**, and **older patients**. - The Perspective argues that national ward-flow measurement would align with recent policy obligations and fill a gap in visibility needed to address inpatient delay harms and system inefficiencies.
## Clinical Analysis & Structured Key Points
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Affiliations Expand ### Affiliation * 1 Create Health Advisory, Brisbane, Qld, Australia. * PMID: **42547057** * DOI: [ 10.1071/AH26114 ](https://doi.org/10.1071/ah26114) Item in Clipboard # Unlocking hidden hospital beds: national medical ward flow measures to make inpatient delays visible Abigail Cliff. Aust Health Rev. 2026. Show details Display options Display options Format Abstract PubMed PMID Aust Health Rev Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Aust+Health+Rev%22%5Bjour%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in NLM Catalog ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nlmcatalog?term=%22Aust+Health+Rev%22%5BTitle+Abbreviation%5D) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) . 2026 Sep 3;50(3):AH26114. doi: 10.1071/AH26114. ### Author [Abigail Cliff](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Cliff+A&cauthor_id=42547057)[ 1 ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/#short-view-affiliation-1 "Create Health Advisory, Brisbane, Qld, Australia.") ### Affiliation * 1 Create Health Advisory, Brisbane, Qld, Australia. * PMID: **42547057** * DOI: [ 10.1071/AH26114 ](https://doi.org/10.1071/ah26114) Item in Clipboard Full text links Cite Display options Display options Format Abstract PubMed PMID ## Abstract Australia's hospital performance framework measures emergency department throughput and elective surgery waiting times, but ignores the inpatient journey where older Australian patients face invisible delays. This Perspective proposes National Medical Measures, simple ward-level flow indicators, to make delay patterns observable throughout the acute episode. The National Health Reform Agreement Addendum 2026-2031 requires Health Ministers to develop performance indicators for long-stay patients and cross-sector interfaces; this policy window should include ward-flow measurement. These measures would deliver national visibility of inpatient delays for the first time, establishing the baseline evidence needed to inform earlier clinical intervention, future target setting, and capacity planning. **Keywords:** National Health Reform Agreement; bed block; delayed discharge; delayed transfer of care; hospital patient flow; inpatient delays; length of stay; older patients; patient flow. © (2026) The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. [PubMed Disclaimer](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/disclaimer/) ## Similar articles * [ The Experience and Effectiveness of Nurse Practitioners in Orthopaedic Settings: A Comprehensive Systematic Review. ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27820153/) Taylor A, Staruchowicz L.Taylor A, et al.JBI Libr Syst Rev. 2012;10(42 Suppl):1-22. doi: 10.11124/jbisrir-2012-249.JBI Libr Syst Rev. 2012.PMID: 27820153 * [ Discharge timeliness and its impact on hospital crowding and emergency department flow performance. ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26845068/) Khanna S, Sier D, Boyle J, Zeitz K.Khanna S, et al.Emerg Med Australas. 2016 Apr;28(2):164-70. doi: 10.1111/1742-6723.12543. Epub 2016 Feb 4.Emerg Med Australas. 2016.PMID: 26845068 * [ Strategies for Reducing Access Block and Waiting Time for Patients Seeking Emergency Hospital Care: Results of a Ward-Level Discrete Event Simulation at Queensland's Largest Public Hospitals. ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41755544/) Hassanzadeh H, Boyle J, Riahi V, Yoon HJ, Diouf I, Khanna S, Sullivan C, Staib A, Bosley E, Samadbeik M, Lind JF.Hassanzadeh H, et al.Med J Aust. 2026 Feb;224(2):e70142. doi: 10.5694/mja2.70142.Med J Aust. 2026.PMID: 41755544Free PMC article. * [ Evaluating mental health decision units in acute care pathways (DECISION): a quasi-experimental, qualitative and health economic evaluation. ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38149657/) Gillard S, Anderson K, Clarke G, Crowe C, Goldsmith L, Jarman H, Johnson S, Lomani J, McDaid D, Pariza P, Park AL, Smith J, Turner K, Yoeli H.Gillard S, et al.Health Soc Care Deliv Res. 2023 Dec;11(25):1-221. doi: 10.3310/PBSM2274.Health Soc Care Deliv Res. 2023.PMID: 38149657 * [ Impact of interventions to improve recovery of older adults following planned hospital admission on quality-of-life following discharge: linked-evidence synthesis. ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38140881/) Kinsey D, Febrey S, Briscoe S, Kneale D, Thompson Coon J, Carrieri D, Lovegrove C, McGrath J, Hemsley A, Melendez-Torres GJ, Shaw L, Nunns M.Kinsey D, et al.Health Soc Care Deliv Res. 2023 Nov;11(23):1-164. doi: 10.3310/GHTY5117.Health Soc Care Deliv Res. 2023.PMID: 38140881 [ See all similar articles ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?linkname=pubmed_pubmed&from_uid=42547057) ## MeSH terms * Australia Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Australia%22%5BMeSH%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in MeSH ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?term=Australia) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) * Efficiency, Organizational* Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Efficiency%2C+Organizational%22%5BMAJR%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in MeSH ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?term=Efficiency%2C+Organizational) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) * Emergency Service, Hospital* Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Emergency+Service%2C+Hospital%22%5BMAJR%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in MeSH ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?term=Emergency+Service%2C+Hospital) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) * Humans Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Humans%22%5BMeSH%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in MeSH ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?term=Humans) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) * Length of Stay Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Length+of+Stay%22%5BMeSH%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in MeSH ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?term=Length+of+Stay) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) * Patient Transfer* Actions * [ Search in PubMed ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22Patient+Transfer%22%5BMAJR%5D&sort=date&sort_order=desc) * [ Search in MeSH ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?term=Patient+Transfer) * [ Add to Search ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42547057/) ## Related information * [ MedGen ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/medgen?linkname=pubmed_medgen&from_uid=42547057 "Related information in MedGen") ## LinkOut - 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