Identifying Potentially Modifiable Factors To Reduce Hospital Readmissions In A Tertiary Care Hospital In Sri Lanka

Abstract

Identifying potentially modifiable factors associated with hospital readmissions would lead to reduction of the burden on healthcare expenditure and improvement of quality of life of patients.

A cross sectional descriptive study was carried out on medical inpatients of University Medical Unit, National Hospital of Sri Lanka. Among the 425 participants, 178 (41.9%) had at least one prior admission over the preceding year. Participants with readmissions were significantly older than those with single admissions. The onset of illness/time since diagnosis, number of chronic illnesses, number of long-term medications, compliance with medications, compliance with follow-up, availability of family support, depression, anxiety, stress and alcohol use were associated with readmissions, whereas the location of follow-up, living arrangement and level of activity was not. A significant proportion of the study population had readmissions. Interventions aiming to reduce pill burden and to improve compliance with medications and follow-up are suggested, and further studies are recommended to assess their impact. Where appropriate, patients should be directed to local hospitals/clinics for follow-up. Early identification of depression, anxiety and stress among patients and assessing each patient’s alcohol intake, and making recommendations for them to obtain necessary help would be beneficial.