Discharge Planning

Discharge planning is an interdisciplinary approach to continuity of care and a process that includes identification, assessment, goal setting, planning, implementation, coordination, and evaluation. Effective discharge planning supports the continuity of health care; it is described as “the critical link between treatment received in hospital by the patient, and post-discharge care provided in the community.” The structure of discharge planning is classified into: (1) informal (ordinary) discharge planning and (2) formal (specialized, structured) discharge planning. Many studies showed that discharge planning may increase patient satisfaction, and some studies showed reduced hospital length of stay and reduced readmission to hospital, but no evidence that it reduced health-care costs. A structured discharge planning tailored to the individual patient probably reduces hospital length of stay and readmission rates for older people admitted to hospital with a medical condition, but the impact of discharge planning on mortality, health outcomes, and cost remains uncertain.

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