Definitions
Key terminology used in emergency department boarding data
A
Access Block
The situation where patients requiring admission to the hospital are unable to gain access to appropriate inpatient beds within a reasonable timeframe, leading to prolonged boarding in the ED.
Average Wait Time
The mean duration (in hours) that admitted patients wait in the emergency department before being transferred to an inpatient unit.
B
Boarding
Hospital boarding in emergency departments occurs when a patient is kept in the emergency department after a decision that admission is needed. Based on national conventions, on this site “boarding” is used when a patient physically stays in the ED for 4 hours or more after the admit decision.
Boarding Time
The duration between when a patient is officially admitted to the hospital and when they are physically transferred to an inpatient unit. This is measured in hours and is a key indicator of ED congestion.
C
Critical Status
A designation indicating that a hospital's ED is operating at over 90% of its stated boarding capacity, potentially limiting its ability to accept new patients.
D
Diversion
A status in which an emergency department requests that ambulances transport patients to other facilities due to capacity constraints or resource limitations.
E
ED Crowding
A situation in which the identified need for emergency services exceeds available resources in the emergency department, creating congestion and impacting access to timely care.
H
Hospital Capacity
The maximum number of patients that an emergency department can accommodate for overnight boarding while maintaining standard care practices, as defined by each facility.
I
Inpatient Unit
A department or area within a hospital dedicated to the care of patients who have been formally admitted for ongoing treatment, as opposed to emergency care.
L
Left Without Being Seen (LWBS)
Patients who leave the emergency department before receiving a complete medical evaluation, often due to long wait times or boarding-related delays.
T
Throughput
The rate at which patients move through the emergency department from arrival to discharge or admission to an inpatient unit.
Note About Definitions
These definitions are standardized across Connecticut emergency departments for consistent reporting and data interpretation. They are based on guidelines from the American College of Emergency Physicians and have been adopted by the Connecticut College of Emergency Physicians for this dashboard.