Background: Hospital scheduling and structure has the potential to smooth the flow and impact quality outcomes. The most predominant hospitalist schedule follows the seven-on/seven-off scheduling where hospitalists would switch off service after the 7th day, also known as switch day, to the next incoming provider. However, there is limited data on which hospitalist switch day [...]

Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening condition involving organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated response to infection [1]. Sepsis is the leading cause of 30-day unplanned readmissions nationwide [2]. At UF Health Shands Hospital, the 30-day readmission rate for sepsis patients is 17% compared to 13% for all adult patients. Of those readmitted for sepsis, 38% [...]

Background: Hospitalized patients who are at high-risk for mortality and readmission represent a unique population requiring tailored interventions to improve care outcomes. Advance care planning (ACP) conversations in the inpatient setting can help align care goals with patient preferences, yet their influence on measurable clinical outcomes in this vulnerable population is not well understood. Methods: [...]

Background: Although popular belief often suggests a link between lunar cycles and human behavior, particularly in psychiatric contexts, scientific evidence supporting this association remains limited. This study explores the potential association between lunar phases and antipsychotic medication administration in psychiatric patient encounters at select hospital units from July 2018 to August 2023. Methods: Data were [...]

Background: This study aimed to investigate the occurrence and characteristics of unplanned 30-day readmissions after an index hospitalization for heart failure in elderly patients. We also sought to identify factors that predict readmission. Methods: We analyzed the 2020 NRD, and non-elective hospitalizations for heart failure among elderly patients aged > 65 years were identified using [...]

Background: Tobacco use remains a major public health issue in the United States as it is linked to a broad spectrum of serious diseases. Although intensive inpatient tobacco treatment programs have shown success, the impact of prescription of smoking cessation medications alone on hospital readmissions has not been thoroughly studied. This study aims to assess [...]

Background: In 2022, healthcare spending in the US accounted for 17.3% of its GDP(1), yet the US ranked near the bottom among high-income nations for key health outcomes. It is unclear if a similar relationship exists between spending and health outcomes across US Hospitals. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) reports a standardized risk-adjusted [...]

Background: Timely post-discharge office visits reduce readmission risk, but the association between telemedicine follow-up visits and readmission in patients discharged from the medicine service remains unclear. The COVID-19 pandemic led to a significant increase in telemedicine utilization for post-discharge follow-up, prompting questions about its association with readmission. Thus, our primary objective was to assess the [...]

Background: Caregivers of Children with Medical Complexity (CCMC) are essential to their child’s care during hospital admissions. Prior research suggests that prolonged hospitalization of their child negatively impacts the emotional, physical and psychosocial well-being of CCMC. However, there is a paucity of data regarding caregivers’ perspectives on potential effective solutions to improve their own wellness [...]

Background: Multi-visit patients (MVP) tend to represent a small portion (< 5%) of all admitted patients, yet account for more than 40% of 30-day readmissions based on prior literature (1-2). Among our institution’s MVPs, Heart failure (HF) exacerbations are one of the top disease presentations accounting for 40% of 30-day readmissions in 2022. These patients [...]