Trauma of hospitalization associated with greater risk of readmission, ED visit

Editor's Note

Poor sleep, missed meals, less physical activity, and stress during hospitalization was associated with a greater risk of 30-day readmissions and emergency department (ED) visits, in this Canadian study.

In this analysis of 207 patients, 75 (36.2%) reported sleep disturbance, 162 (78.3%) reported mobility disturbance, 114 (55.1%) reported nutrition disturbance, and 48 (23.25) reported mood disturbance.

A statistically significant 15.8% greater risk of readmissions or ED visits was found in patients with high trauma compared with low trauma (37.7% vs 21.9%).

This research builds on a growing body of evidence that patient experience in the hospital may be linked to post-hospital outcomes and risk of readmission, the authors say.