Discharge information after emergency department (ED) care improves patients’ ability to care for themselves, understand their health concerns, and informs the next steps of care. The majority of patients at St. Michael’s receive only verbal communication despite many attempts at supplementing with written information. We used experience-based co-design, involving recent ED patients, ED physicians, nurses, and family physicians to develop a solution that integrates with current workflow, space, and technological constraints. This resulted in the development of a Patient-oriented chart (POC), a second page to the physician ED chart, printed with every patient registered. It contains customized information addressing 4 patient-centered outcomes and wayfinding for digital access to personal health information. It is also designed to coordinate discharge information across ED physicians and nurses and to facilitate follow-up of important results with their primary care provider.
