March 7 (UPI) -- Researchers say longer hospital stays may prevent readmission based on a study suggesting transfers to post-acute care facilities increase risk for readmission.
More than 25 percent of Medicare beneficiaries who are admitted to the hospital are sent directly to a post-acute care facility, such as a rehabilitation or skilled nursing center upon discharge, however, more than 23 percent of patients are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of initial discharge.
For the study, published by the American Geriatric Society, researchers analyzed data on 81,173 older adults aged 65 or older who were readmitted to the hospital from post-acute care facilities within seven days of being discharged.
The researchers then compared their results to data from older adults who were readmitted between eight and 30 days after a hospital discharge.
Results showed older adults who were readmitted to hospitals within one week of being discharged from a post-acute care facility had more significant chronic disease than people who weren't readmitted in that time period.
The study also suggests that a shorter initial hospital stay is linked to earlier readmission to the hospital. Other causes for quick readmission was patients living in rural areas, being admitted for heart attack or pneumonia and being discharged from smaller hospitals.
Researchers are urging longer hospital stays to ensure older patients are healthy enough before being discharged initially to prevent early readmissions.
The study was published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society..
