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Discharge planning under fire

Case Management Weekly, October 9, 2007

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Critics of post-discharge planning have taken the stand in front of a California legislative panel, reports The Sacramento Bee. The state's Aging & Long-Term Care and Health committees met to discuss the discharge plans given to patients before they left hospital.

Among those testifying was Barbara Biglieri of the California Association for Health Service at Home; she claimed that 25% of patients currently return to hospital within one week of discharge and that more than half return within three weeks.

Other experts blamed LOS and cost pressures for what they saw as inadequate planning and a lack of access to at-home services, with one critic adding that "virtually any frail senior will be viewed by doctors and discharge planners as nursing care eligible."

But as the panel heard that regulations often impose barriers for patients wanting to return to their homes, state officials confirmed that a strategy for improving care for seniors and a coordinated care pilot were in development.

Source: The Sacramento Bee

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