Quality of Surgery Linked to Hospital Readmission

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(Ivanhoe Newswire) – The quality of surgery has been linked to hospital readmission rates, according to new research from Harvard University.
The study used 30-day readmission rates for six major surgical procedures, including hip replacement, coronary-artery bypass grafting, and colectomy. In total, the study evaluated over 479,000 patients from over 3,000 hospitals. Using surgical volume and 30-day mortality rates as measures of surgical quality, researchers found the better these two rates, the lower the readmission rate. The findings could prompt hospitals and policy makers to focus more on the quality of surgical care, as hospital readmissions account for huge costs for those on Medicare and Medicaid.
For more information, go to: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa1303118
SOURCE: New England Journal of Medicine, September 2013