Readmission from skilled nursing facility often avoidable

(HealthDay)—A considerable proportion of hospital readmissions from skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) are considered potentially avoidable, according to a study published online Dec. 16 in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

Eduard E. Vasilevskis, M.D., M.P.H., from the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., and colleagues performed a prospective cohort study to examine the percentage of readmissions from post-acute care that are considered potentially avoidable from hospital and SNF perspectives. Patients from a quality improvement trial who were discharged to one of 23 regional SNFs and readmitted to the hospital within 30 days were enrolled.

The researchers found that there were 262 hospital readmissions among 1,808 discharges, for a 30-day unplanned readmission rate to the index hospital of 14.5 percent. One hundred twenty of the readmissions had root-cause analyses from both the hospital and SNF. Thirty and 13.3 percent of readmissions were rated as potentially avoidable according to hospital and SNF staff, respectively. For 73.3 percent of the 120 readmissions, hospital and SNF ratings of potential avoidability agreed; readmission factors varied between settings. The most common avoidable readmission factors by hospitals and SNFs were diagnostic problems and improved management of changes in conditions, respectively.

"These data support the need for joint accountability and collaboration for future readmission reduction efforts between hospitals and their SNF partners," the authors write.