Hospital readmissions at the communitywide level: implications for case management

This study describes the development of information concerning the distribution of hospital readmissions by diagnosis in seven different United States metropolitan areas. The data demonstrated that circulatory disorders were associated with the largest number of communitywide readmissions in all of the communities. It also showed that circulatory, respiratory, and digestive disorders accounted for a majority of readmissions in all of the areas. This information suggested that case management efforts to reduce readmissions can focus on a limited range of clinical diagnoses. This approach should enable the process to function effectively within resource constraints.