Identifying Adverse Events After Discharge From a Community Hospital

Overview

The purpose of this study is to: -Determine the incidence of adverse events, preventable adverse events, and ameliorable adverse events, and the timeliness of post-discharge ambulatory appointments, affecting urban and rural patients approximately 3-4 weeks after discharge from a hospitalist-run medical service of a large community hospital to home. H1: The incidence of post-discharge adverse events will be higher in rural patients compared with urban patients discharged from a hospitalist-run medical service of a large community hospital. -Identify and classify the types of post-discharge adverse events (e.g., adverse drug events, procedure-related events, hospital acquired (nosocomial) infections, falls, and other) affecting urban and rural patients approximately 3-4 weeks after discharge from a hospitalist-run medical service of a large community hospital to home. H2: All patients will be at higher risk for adverse drug events than other types of adverse events. -Examine the relationships between the population at risk, characteristics of the health care delivery system, and the utilization of post-discharge health services, and how these relationships help us understand the incidence of post-discharge adverse events. H3: Several factors will be independently associated with the incidence of post-discharge adverse events in rural and urban patients, including patient comorbidity, severity of acute illness, presence of a primary care physician prior to hospitalization, and a scheduled timely post-discharge ambulatory follow-up appointment.

This 24-month prospective cohort study will examine the frequency and types of adverse events experienced by patients 3-4 weeks after discharge from the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital (TMH), the timeliness of post-discharge ambulatory appointments, and identify the associations, if any, of readily available patient, system, and patient care factors with the occurrence of these post-discharge adverse events. Data collection will involve telephone interviews with patients, and review of inpatient and outpatient health records for services received, as necessary, within 3-4 weeks after discharge from the hospital. These data sources will allow study physicians to implicitly (with some explicit guidance) determine whether an adverse event has occurred, distinguish preventable from ameliorable adverse events, and determine the types of adverse events. In addition, the study will determine the timeliness of post-discharge ambulatory appointments by conducting post-discharge telephone interviews with patients and reviewing health records.