Background: Hospital readmissions are frequent and can represent low-quality, high-cost care. Timely post-hospital follow-up has been described as an important element of high-quality transitions of care and readmissions prevention (1-3), yet exactly what type of follow-up is most successful is unclear. We sought to understand the relationship between timing, hospital follow-up visit provider specialty and [...]

Background: The traditional role of hospitalists is to provide care to patients hospitalized with acute medical conditions. Over the past few years, this has evolved to improve care transitions and stewardship of hospital resources. Many hospitals may embed hospitalists in the Emergency Department (ED) to improve patient flow into the hospital; however, there are sparse [...]

Background: Hospital readmissions are frequent and can represent low-quality, high-cost care. Timely post-hospital follow-up has been described as an important element of high-quality transitions of care and readmissions prevention (1-3), yet exactly what type of follow-up is most successful is unclear. We sought to understand the relationship between timing, hospital follow-up visit provider specialty and [...]

Background: The value of follow-up blood cultures (FUBCs) to document clearance of bacteremia due to gram-negative bacilli (GNB) has not been well-established. Although previous studies suggested the yield of FUBC for GNB bacteremia is low, it remains to be elucidated for whom FUBC may be beneficial and for whom unnecessary. The objective of the study [...]

Background: The traditional role of hospitalists is to provide care to patients hospitalized with acute medical conditions. Over the past few years, this has evolved to improve care transitions and stewardship of hospital resources. Many hospitals may embed hospitalists in the Emergency Department (ED) to improve patient flow into the hospital; however, there are sparse [...]

Background: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the third most common cause of hospital readmission within 30 days of discharge. These readmissions increase the overall healthcare cost burden. We examined the effect of early follow-up visit with patient’s primary care physician (PCP) or pulmonologist on 30-day and 1-year readmission risk. Methods: We constructed an electronic [...]

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic disease where treatment is directed toward reducing and delaying its potentially severe short- and long-term complications. The estimated population (20-79 years old) with diabetes is 32.22 million in the United States, and 12.5% of people live with undiagnosed diabetes (Figure 1). Diabetes Mellitus is currently the most prevalent [...]

Background: Project IMPACT (Improving Pediatric Patient-Centered Care Transitions) is a multi-center quality improvement collaborative aiming to improve hospital to home transitions. As part of this project, providers attempt to schedule follow-up visits prior to discharge and conduct post-discharge phone calls. Objective: 1.Determine relationship between scheduling post-discharge follow-up visits and 30-day reutilization rates 2. Characterize patients [...]

Background: Post discharge (d/c) follow-up calls are utilized for many reasons: monitoring patient (pt) status, understanding of d/c instructions including medications and appointments, and satisfaction with hospital care. Adult data suggests such calls improve satisfaction and may impact readmission rates. Little data about the impact of such calls on pediatrics pts exists. Our objective was [...]

Background: Helicobacter pylori (HP) infection is one of the most prevalent chronic bacterial infections, infecting more than half of the global population. The sensitivity of HP diagnostic tests decreases with the use of antibiotics and/or antisecretory drugs. Given the increasing rates of macrolide resistance worldwide, comprehensive testing for HP eradication is imperative. In this quality [...]