OBJECTIVE The aim of the present study was to examine the timing and outcomes of patients requiring an unplanned transfer from subacute to acute care. METHODS Subacute care in-patients requiring unplanned transfer to an acute care facility within four Victorian health services from 1 January to 31 December 2010 were included in the study. Data were collected using retrospective audit. The pri...

Subacute and rehabilitation services are likely to play an increasingly important role in the health and long-term care systems, as population ageing increases the prevalence of chronic disease and disability. The role and scope of these services is difficult to assess in the Australian context due to the paucity of standardised definitions and administrative reporting systems. This paper appra...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Acute ischemic stroke patients who receive recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) within 3 hours of symptom onset are 30% more likely to have minimal to no disability at 3 months. During hospitalization, short-term disability is subjectively measured by discharge disposition, whether to home, inpatient rehabilitation, a skilled nursing facility, or subacute care...

INTRODUCTION The subacute care unit in Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) was set up in May 2009. We examined its impact on the transitions at the nexus between hospital and community sectors, patients' discharge destination and functional performance. MATERIALS AND METHODS We studied patients admitted during the initial 6-month period (May to October 2009). Differences in demographics, length of ...

Over the past two decades various models of community-based care for persons with severe mental illness have been developed. This study, which represents the first comparison of the most successful care approach (Program of Assertive Community Treatment or PACT adaptation model) with other, less intensive approaches (clinical team and intensive broker models) in a community service system, indi...

BACKGROUND Many academic medical centers employ nurse practitioners as substitutes to provide care normally supplied by house staff. OBJECTIVE To compare outcomes in a subacute medical intensive care unit of patients managed by a team consisting of either an acute care nurse practitioner and an attending physician or an attending physician and critical care/pulmonary fellows. METHODS During...

So-called excess growth in Medicare spending per beneficiary has varied widely and has slowed in recent years. The annual rate of excess growth fell from 5.6 percent during 1975-1983, to 2.1 percent during 1983-1997, to only 0.5 percent during 1997-2005. Changes in payment policies and regulations can help explain the observed slowdown. These include new prospective payment systems for hospital...