Evaluating causes for unplanned hospital readmissions of palliative care patients.

This study evaluated reasons why palliative care patients were readmitted within 30 days of discharge. A secondary purpose was to determine whether length of stay (LOS) was different between readmission reasons. From July 2006 to June 2007, 156 palliative care readmissions were identified. Codes were assigned to each readmission and included compliance issues, discharge planning, disease process, new diagnosis, premature discharge, surgical complications, and other. Results demonstrated that disease progression (63%) and development of new co-morbidities (17%) were the primary readmission causes. No significant differences among readmission causes for LOS were identified. As the primary reason for readmission was the disease process, a closer look at the most common disease processes and the specific complications that resulted in a readmission would be helpful in planning patient care.