Concept explainer
Units, locations and beds
Explains how units, locations and beds are arranged within a site, and how a bed holds a patient during an inpatient stay.
Within a site, care is arranged into units, locations and beds. This page sets out how the three nest inside a site, and how a bed holds a patient through an inpatient stay.
Inside a site
A site divides into units, a unit into locations, and a location holds beds. Each level narrows the last, from a whole ward down to a single bed.
Unit
A unit is an operational division of a site, such as a ward, an intensive care unit or an outpatient department. A unit gathers the locations and the staff that work together.
Location
A location is a place within a unit, such as a room, a bay or a consulting room. A location is where a patient is seen or held.
Bed
A bed is the smallest location, and it is where an inpatient stays. A bed belongs to one location, and it holds one patient at a time through an inpatient stay.
- site
- unit
- location
- bedthe smallest location, holds one patient
The unit the bed sits in.
The room or bay that holds the bed.
Whether the bed is available, reserved, occupied or closed.
Bed occupancy
A bed moves through a small set of states as patients come and go. It waits available, is held for an incoming patient, holds a patient through a stay, and returns to use once the patient moves on and the bed is cleaned.
Beyond the bed
A location holds a bed in an inpatient area, and seats a patient in an outpatient area.
A consulting room is a location where a patient is seen and then returns to use for the next patient. The same structure carries both kinds of place, so a site models its wards and its clinics in one model.
Beds and encounters
A bed holds a patient for the length of an inpatient stay. The stay itself is an encounter, opened by Gate when the patient is admitted.
Moving a patient between beds updates the bed each one holds, while the encounter stays the same. Read how visits and encounters frame a patient's contact with the hospital.
Common questions
Is a bed the same as a location?
A bed is the smallest kind of location. A room or a bay is a larger location that can hold several beds.
Can a location hold more than one bed?
Yes. A bay or a room is a location, and it can hold several beds, each one holding a single patient.
What happens to a bed when a patient moves?
The bed returns to available once the patient moves on and it is cleaned, ready for the next patient.
Read how services receive orders and provide care within a site.