Management of hospital readmissions in internal medicine

Rev Clin Esp (Barc). 2013 May;213(4):203-7. doi: 10.1016/j.rce.2012.03.007. Epub 2012 Apr 25.
[Article in English, Spanish]

Abstract

The unplanned hospital readmission ratio is an unusual indicator of health care quality. Hospital readmission could be due to clinical or health care factors, to factors related to the patient and his/her social and familial setting, to factors related to the disease, or to a combination of all of them. The former could be avoided by designing effective interventions for the follow-up of the patients after discharge. We present a case of a male patient with a common clinical problem and propose the measures that could help to avoid his readmission. The article ends with the author's clinical recommendations.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Continuity of Patient Care
  • Geriatrics
  • Humans
  • Internal Medicine
  • Male
  • Medication Reconciliation / standards*
  • Patient Readmission* / statistics & numerical data