A Four-Year Monocenter Epidemiological Analysis of 30-Day Unplanned Readmission Patients

Describe the distribution and clinical characteristics of unplanned readmission patients.

This study employed a retrospective observational design to investigate patients who were unplanned readmissions at a general hospital in Guangdong Province between January 2016 and December 2019. It compared and analyzed the distribution patterns and clinical characteristics of patients readmitted unplanned across different subgroups.

We collected data on 15,585 patients. Among unplanned readmissions, patients aged 41 or older (10,618, 68.13%), females (8243, 52.89%), married individuals (10,660, 68.4%), and employees (3834, 24.6%) had higher proportions. Most patients had some form of insurance (12,026, 77.16%). Significant differences were observed in the sociodemographic statistics of unplanned readmission patients across different time periods. The average duration of unplanned readmission was approximately two weeks. Among patients aged 41 and above, nearly half (6803; 43.65%) had unplanned readmissions lasting more than 2 weeks. Most patients had undergone surgery (11,395, 73.12%), with the highest proportions undergoing urological (2575, 16.5%) and gynecological (2437, 15.6%) surgery.

Unplanned readmission patients are primarily middle-aged and older adults aged 40 and above, women, married individuals, and employed persons. They bear a heavy disease burden, and while most have health insurance, a significant proportion remain uninsured. These patients are mainly referred from surgical departments, particularly urology and obstetrics and gynecology. Unplanned readmissions most frequently occur within two weeks of discharge, and hospitalization costs rise significantly with age; therefore, greater attention should be paid to this issue in discharge instructions.