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Hospital “huddles” speed up decision-making to accelerate diagnosis and discharge
The fast-paced, high-pressure environment often portrayed in emergency department TV dramas reflects a real challenge in hospitals: how to diagnose patients quickly and move them safely through care under intense time pressure.
A new study from FIU Business finds that brief, structured team meetings among hospital staff — known as progression-of-care huddles — can significantly speed diagnosis and discharge times.
The research, led by Paulo Gomes, an associate professor of information systems and business analytics, found that regular huddles reduced diagnostic decision time by 14% and cut discharge time by nearly 40% for patients requiring complex care coordination. The findings appear in the Journal of Health Organization and Management.
Importantly, faster decision-making did not come at the expense of patient safety. The study found no increase in 30-day hospital readmissions, a key measure of care quality.
“In healthcare, safety and quality are always the priority,” Gomes said. “What we found is that the process becomes faster without sacrificing quality.”
The study analyzed nearly 6,800 patient cases over a 14-month period in a hospital clinical decision unit, comparing performance before and after the implementation of short, interdisciplinary meetings involving physicians, nurses, social workers and care coordinators.
“In those settings, many professionals must coordinate their actions under uncertainty,” Gomes said. “The huddle works as an attention-directing mechanism — it brings everyone together and focuses the team on the problem that needs to be solved.”
The meetings, typically about 15 minutes and held throughout the day, allow staff to review each patient’s status, discuss pending tests or consultations and identify obstacles that could delay treatment or discharge. Researchers found that these structured conversations helped clinicians reach diagnoses faster by improving information sharing and creating a shared understanding of each patient’s condition.
“Huddles are particularly valuable when tasks are not routine,” Gomes said. “When uncertainty is high, bringing people together helps teams align around what needs to happen next.”
The impact was strongest in cases requiring coordination across multiple specialists and administrative processes, such as arranging care with physical therapists, insurance providers and post-acute facilities.
The research showed that for huddles to be effective, organizations need timely information systems, clear pathways to escalate and resolve issues and participants with decision-making authority. They must also be treated as an operational priority, with fixed schedules, concise formats and focused agendas that embed them into daily workflows.
As hospitals face growing demand and resource constraints, the study highlights how improving team coordination can deliver meaningful gains in both efficiency and quality of patient care.
A new study from FIU Business finds that brief, structured team meetings among hospital staff — known as progression-of-care huddles — can significantly speed diagnosis and discharge times.
The research, led by Paulo Gomes, an associate professor of information systems and business analytics, found that regular huddles reduced diagnostic decision time by 14% and cut discharge time by nearly 40% for patients requiring complex care coordination. The findings appear in the Journal of Health Organization and Management.
Importantly, faster decision-making did not come at the expense of patient safety. The study found no increase in 30-day hospital readmissions, a key measure of care quality.
“In healthcare, safety and quality are always the priority,” Gomes said. “What we found is that the process becomes faster without sacrificing quality.”
The study analyzed nearly 6,800 patient cases over a 14-month period in a hospital clinical decision unit, comparing performance before and after the implementation of short, interdisciplinary meetings involving physicians, nurses, social workers and care coordinators.
“In those settings, many professionals must coordinate their actions under uncertainty,” Gomes said. “The huddle works as an attention-directing mechanism — it brings everyone together and focuses the team on the problem that needs to be solved.”
The meetings, typically about 15 minutes and held throughout the day, allow staff to review each patient’s status, discuss pending tests or consultations and identify obstacles that could delay treatment or discharge. Researchers found that these structured conversations helped clinicians reach diagnoses faster by improving information sharing and creating a shared understanding of each patient’s condition.
“Huddles are particularly valuable when tasks are not routine,” Gomes said. “When uncertainty is high, bringing people together helps teams align around what needs to happen next.”
The impact was strongest in cases requiring coordination across multiple specialists and administrative processes, such as arranging care with physical therapists, insurance providers and post-acute facilities.
The research showed that for huddles to be effective, organizations need timely information systems, clear pathways to escalate and resolve issues and participants with decision-making authority. They must also be treated as an operational priority, with fixed schedules, concise formats and focused agendas that embed them into daily workflows.
As hospitals face growing demand and resource constraints, the study highlights how improving team coordination can deliver meaningful gains in both efficiency and quality of patient care.