Background: There is an international trend to shorten the postpartum length of stay in hospitals, driven by cost containment, hospital bed availability and a movement toward the ‘demedicalization’ of birth. The aim of this systematic literature review is to determine how early postnatal discharge policies from hospitals could affect health outcomes after vaginal delivery for healthy mothers an...

BACKGROUND Older age and higher acuity are associated with prolonged hospital stays and hospital readmissions. Early discharge planning may reduce lengths of hospital stay and hospital readmissions; however, its effectiveness with acutely admitted older adults is unclear. METHODS In this systematic review, we compared the effectiveness of early discharge planning to usual care in reducing ind...

BACKGROUND Many patients with pneumonia and lower respiratory tract infection that could be treated as outpatients according to their clinical severity score, are in fact admitted to hospital. We investigated whether, with medical and social input, these patients could be discharged early and treated at home. OBJECTIVES (1) To assess the feasibility of providing an early supported discharge s...

Our aim was to study the safety of outpatient treatment in low risk patients with acute pulmonary embolism compared with inpatient treatment, the current clinical standard. We searched Medline, Web of Science, Cochrane and EMBASE databases and included studies on outpatient treatment of pulmonary embolism. The outcomes were 3-month recurrent venous thromboembolism, major bleeding and all-cause ...

BACKGROUND It is unclear if the 30-day unplanned hospital readmission rate is a plausible accountability metric. OBJECTIVE Compare preventability of hospital readmissions, between an early period [0-7 days post-discharge] and a late period [8-30 days post-discharge]. Compare causes of readmission, and frequency of markers of clinical instability 24h prior to discharge between early and late r...

OBJECTIVE To ascertain the economic impact of an early discharge scheme for hip fracture patients. DESIGN Population based study comparing costs of care for patients who had "hospital at home" as an option for rehabilitation and those who had no early discharge service available in their area of residence. SETTING District hospital orthopaedic and rehabilitation wards and community hospital...

BACKGROUND This study evaluated changes in motor unit (MU) firing rates in young and older adults during exercise training. METHODS Vastus lateralis MU discharge rates were measured in 8 young and 7 older adults. Each participant performed isometric knee extension contractions at 10%, 50%, and 100% of maximal voluntary contraction or effort (MVC) on two separate occasions. Participants then c...

OBJECTIVE To describe newborn length of stay, postdischarge follow-up, and health care utilization in the context of Minnesota's early discharge legislation. DESIGN AND SETTING Retrospective study using claims data from a large managed care organization. PARTICIPANTS Term newborns born from January 1995 through February 1999 (N = 22 944). OUTCOME MEASURES Newborn length of stay, home or c...