Reducing the likelihood that a patient will be readmitted: A resident's perspective

Finding answers to these questions and working on solutions can help minimize the readmission rate.

The post-discharge component of care has a significant role, too, including psycho-education of the patient and the family regarding:
• ongoing psychiatric disease
• potential side effects of medications
• post-discharge telephone calls
• timely follow-up (within 2 or 3 weeks)
• good communication with the outpa­tient provider, through telephone calls or a faxed discharge summary.^2,3

I’ve learned that it isn’t uncommon for health care providers to give in to negative emotions and become frustrated. For resi­dents and other members of the team alike, it is important to talk to one’s supervisor and colleagues about that frustration. It is the duty of every member of the treatment team to support each another and main­tain a therapeutic posture on the unit.

At the end of every day, of course, what matters is the well-being of our patients.

Disclosure
Dr. Sharma reports no financial relationships with any company whose products are mentioned in this article or with manufacturers of competing products.