Medicare's Readmissions-Reduction Program - A Positive Alternative.
N Engl J Med. 2012 Mar 28;
Authors: Berenson RA, Paulus RA, Kalman NS
Abstract
Hospital readmissions are receiving increasing attention as a largely correctable source of poor quality of care and excessive spending. According to a 2009 study, nearly 20% of Medicare beneficiaries are rehospitalized within 30 days after discharge, at an annual cost of $17 billion.(1) Causes of avoidable readmissions include hospital-acquired infections and other complications; premature discharge; failure to coordinate and reconcile medications; inadequate communication among hospital personnel, patients, caregivers, and community-based clinicians; and poor planning for care transitions. Although studies have shown that specific interventions, particularly among patients with multiple medical conditions, can reduce readmission rates by 25 to 50%,(2) the . . .
PMID: 22455754 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]