Readmission

How it is used

Measured as the 30-day readmission rate, a common quality indicator. Some payers reduce payments to hospitals with high rates of avoidable readmissions. Managers separate planned readmissions, such as a second stage of treatment, from unplanned ones.

Example sentences

1. Our 30-day readmission rate for heart failure is higher than the regional average.

2. A follow-up phone call two days after discharge helped reduce readmissions.

Common collocations

• readmission rate
• 30-day readmission
• avoidable readmission
• reduce readmissions
• unplanned readmission

Related terms

• dischargeThe point when a patient officially leaves hospital care, usually to go home, after the team decides they no longer need to stay.
• length of stayThe number of days a patient spends in hospital from admission to discharge; the average across many patients is a key efficiency measure.
• discharge planningPreparing early for a patient's safe exit from hospital, including medicines, follow-up appointments, equipment and support at home.
• clinical outcomeThe effect of care on a patient's health, such as recovery, complications, quality of life or death, used to judge how well a treatment or service works.

More terms: Patient Flow and Capacity

• admission
• bed occupancy rate
• patient flow
• referral
• waiting list
• waiting time
• triage
• capacity
• bed management
• bottleneck
• elective