McKnights Long-Term Care News recently published an article discussing the importance of
palliative care and conversations with patients and families regarding their personal goals of care. Providers have long understood the negative impact of hospital readmissions for patients and their facilities and have been focused on reducing hospital readmissions.
Hospital readmissions put beneficiaries at risk for complications, and have the potential for
negative physical, emotional, and psychological impacts on patients and their
caregivers.Readmission to the hospital interrupts the SNF patient’s therapy and care plan, causes anxiety and discomfort, and exposes the patient to hospital-acquired adverse events, such as loss of functional status, healthcare-associated infections, and medication errors.
What’s more, high readmission rates are stressful for staff and can tarnish the reputation of the SNF and its ability to participate in health system networks, which in turn impacts occupancy and the financial health of the facility.
Assisting families through these sensitive discussions and getting them accurate information on their treatments options can lead to better documentation of their care decisions. Identifying and documenting when patients prefer to avoid further hospitalizations and adopt a comfort care approach can reduce readmissions that are unwanted and unnecessary.
