JAMA Publishes Research Emphasizing Acuity in Children’s Hospitals
March 10, 2011
Posted by chcablogadmin in : Academic Medicine, Cost Reduction, Quality
“Hospital Utilization and Characteristics of Patients Experiencing Recurrent Readmissions Within Children’s Hospitals,” by lead author Jay G. Berry, M.D., MPH, an attending physician in the Complex Care Service at Children’s Hospital Boston; John Neff, M.D., from Seattle Children’s Hospital, and colleagues from six other CHCA Owner Hospitals, along with Matt Hall, Ph.D., and Jacqueline Kueser from CHCA, examined recurrent hospitalizations within a 365-day interval at 37 CHCA hospitals utilizing PHIS data.
One important finding was nearly 20 percent of admissions and one-quarter of inpatient expenditures ($3.4 billion) were accounted for by a small group (2.9 percent) of patients who were re-hospitalized at the same hospital four or more times within a one-year period. Many of the patients are children with chronic health conditions that require multiple, unavoidable and necessary re-hospitalizations. However, the re-hospitalizations associated with ambulatory care sensitive conditions and those associated with repeated hospitalizations for the same problem may be potentially avoidable. This growing acuity for children’s hospitals creates a necessity for more in-depth analysis of these complex cases and potential strategies to meet the patients’ health care needs, optimally manage their acute illnesses, and minimize their chronic illness exacerbations.
Jay Berry, M.D., MPH
It may be important for each CHCA hospital and their quality and leadership teams to examine children who are re-hospitalized repeatedly back to their hospital, particularly those children with complex, chronic health conditions who require substantial resources and staffing. — Jay Berry, M.D., MPH
Note: For more information about research and clinical innovation at Boston Children’s visit: Vector Blog or Dr. Berry’s blog entry on this paper.
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