Background: The purpose of this qualitative study was to use a Learning Health System approach to identify factors influencing the emergence of innovation in rehabilitation hospital discharge decision-making during the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Methods: Rehabilitation clinicians were recruited from the Veterans Affairs Health Care System and participated in individual semi-structured interviews guided by the integrated Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services (i-PARIHS) framework. Data were analyzed using a rapid qualitative, deductive team-based approach informed by directed content analysis.
Results: Twenty-three rehabilitation clinicians representing physical (N = 11) and occupational therapy (N = 12) participated in the study. Three primary themes were generated: (1) Recipients: innovations emerged as approaches to communicating discharge recommendations changed (in-person to virtual) and strong patient/family preferences to discharge to the home challenged collaborative goal setting; (2) Context: the ability of rehabilitation clinicians to innovate and the form of innovations were influenced by the broader hospital system, interdisciplinary team dynamics, and policy fluctuations; (3) Innovation: emerging innovations in discharge processes included perceived increases in team collaboration, shifts in caseload prioritization, and alternative options for post-acute care.
Conclusions: Our findings reinforce that rehabilitation clinicians developed innovative strategies to quickly adapt to multiple systems-level factors that were changing in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research is needed to assess the impact of innovations, remediate unintended consequences, and evaluate the implementation of promising innovations to respond to emerging healthcare delivery needs more rapidly.
Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; Learning Health System; Veterans; hospital decisions; implementation science; transitions of care.