[Results of a preventive program and assisted hospital discharge for XXXX . A feasibility study].

@entity1 @entity1030
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Exacerbation of @entity1030 ( @entity1030 ) is one of the most frequent causes of hospital admission. We examined the results and feasibility of two programs conducted by a hospital respiratory unit aimed to reduce both the length of hospital stay and the number of hospital admissions for @entity1030 acute exacerbation. @entity1 AND METHOD: a) Assisted hospital discharge program: @entity1 admitted for acute exacerbation who met our criteria for early discharge were sent home with the support of a respiratory nurse. Home visits were carried out and direct phone contact with the nurse and physician was provided during a limited period of 6 weeks. Outcome variables studied were length of hospital admission and need for hospital reentry. b) Exacerbation prevention program: A group of @entity1 with severe @entity1030 and at least 3 hospital admissions for exacerbation during the previous year were included. These @entity1 underwent an educational program and were given unlimited direct phone access to the respiratory nurse and physician. When necessary, home visits were carried out. The main outcome variable of this program was the number of hospital admissions. RESULTS: a) Assisted hospital discharge program: A total of 97 @entity1 were included. The mean length of hospital stay was 5.4 1.7 days, which was significantly shorter than the previous average length of stay in our respiratory unit for a diagnosis of @entity1030 (8.52 days). The rate of hospital reentry was 17% (within the first 3 months). b) Exacerbation prevention program: 23 @entity1 were enrolled. In this group, the number of hospital admissions decreased significantly from 5.0 1.8 to 1.7 2.4 per year (p = 0.001). Visits to the emergency department were also decreased, from 1.2 1.6 to 0.4 1.6 per @entity1 (p = 0.05). Finally, the length of hospital stay decreased from 38 17 to 16 20 days (p = 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: A combined use of hospital resources and home care programs which are specifically addressed to severe @entity1030 @entity1 can reduce the need for hospital admission.
