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Lesson 5 min· foundational
Bed control basics for go-live support
How patient placement questions usually move from request to assignment to handoff.
Section 1
Where placement starts
Most placement questions begin with a request: a unit needs a bed, or a patient needs to move. The request lands somewhere — bed control, a charge nurse, or a coordinator — and waits on a status check before anyone moves.
Section 2
The three things to confirm
Confirm the current location of the patient, the destination unit or service, and whether a placement order or status already exists. Without all three, no one can act.
Section 3
Who owns the next step
Placement issues stall when ownership is unclear. Name the next owner out loud: 'Bed control owns the assignment; the sending unit owns transport.' Hand off with a callback time.
Takeaways
- Request → status → owner. In that order.
- Location and destination before anything else.
- Name the next owner out loud.
bed-controlplacementhandoff
Keep going
playbook · 5 min
Patient placement question — first 90 seconds
Confirm the request, location, order/status, and who owns the next step before escalating.
checklist · 2 min
Before escalating a bed assignment issue
Scope, location, status, requester, and next owner.
video · 2 min
Bed control handoff in 90 seconds
How to summarize a placement issue without adding PHI.
video · 2 min
Floor handoff in 90 seconds
What to say to the next shift consultant.