Scandal of hospital readmissions soar

The following article is from the Telegraph UK concerning the National Health Service, government health care, in the UK.  As you read think about how this same situation would affect us here in the USA, or perhaps it already is. The NHS seems more concerned with clearing beds for new patients than they are about actually curing the patients already admitted.  The emphasis is on the procedures and not on the patients.  You can bet money is at the root of this situation

The number of NHS patients who have to undergo emergency readmission to hospital within a month of being discharged has increased by more than three quarters in the last decade, the Daily Telegraph can disclose.

Hospitals have been accused by ministers of treating patients “like parts on a production line” after official figures suggested that hundreds of thousands of people every year are being sent home before they are well enough.

More than 660,000 people were brought back to hospital last year within 28 days of leaving, statistics show, sparking allegations that patients are being “hurried through the system” so the NHS can meet waiting-list targets.

The official figures show that some NHS trusts have seen their emergency readmission rate rise more than threefold over the past decade – while some hospitals have seen only a modest increase.  [snip]

“One of the new goals we are setting the NHS is reducing emergency readmissions. In order to help achieve this we have created a re-ablement fund of £300 million and we have taken action to stop hospitals being paid when they readmit a patient after discharging them too early. These steps will turn Labour’s poor performance around.”

Under the Government scheme, hospitals will effectively be responsible for people’s care in the weeks after they return home and will be financially penalised for discharging patients too soon.

Ministers have also increased funding for so-called “tele-health” where people can “manage” their long-term conditions independently at home but are remotely monitored by doctors.   (continue reading, hat tip Marcus Wilder)

 

Comments

[Grouch at Right Truth]

It is already here in the United States. Hospitals are paid a fixed amount of money for taking care of Medicare patients. This is called a DRG (diagnosis related group). It doesn't matter if the patient stays 3 days or 10 days. The pay is the same. So the stage is already set for getting people out of the hospital as quickly as possible. To make matters worse if a patient is readmitted to the hospital within 30 days with the SAME DIAGNOSIS, the hospital will be paid NOTHING!

The dirty little secret here is that as Medicare becomes more and more insolvent, the government will simply expect already cash strapped hospitals to make charity cases out of old folks and care for them for FREE. The blame will be shifted to those evil hospitals for discharging those poor Medicare patients "too soon". The punishment will be no payment at all.

This approach is much easier than truly reforming Medicare into a system that is viable. You see how far Paul Ryan got with that idea.

I blogged on this very topic about a month ago Go read.....

http://grouchatrighttruth.blogspot.com/2011/11/more-medicare-cuts-lets-just-push-old.html

[Jenny]

I agree, I have heard of several cases recently where people were released much too early and had to go right back. A friend of our daughter and son-in-law was sent home only a few days after brain surgery. His pregnant wife found him the next day lying in a pool of blood and infection on his pillow. He suffered another surgery and removal of a plate they'd put in. Now he's facing yet another surgery to put the plate back, because they had to take it out. Seems to me if they'd left him there to get well in the first place, all of that most likely would not have happened. So I'm sure it's already happening here, and it's bound to get worse. Another reason I hate hospitals ... almost as much as I hate air travel.

On a happier note, HAPPY NEW YEAR to you and yours, Debbie! NOBAMA 2012!!!

[Always On Watch]

Debbie,
Stopping by to wish you many blessings in the coming year.