Medical care
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Public reporting on quality aims to help patients select better hospitals. However, individual quality measures are suboptimal in identifying superior and inferior hospitals based on outcome performance. ⋯ Composite measures of quality for HF, AMI, and PNA performed better than existing measures at explaining variation in future mortality and predicting future high and low performers.
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Reducing readmissions is a national priority, but many hospitals lack practical tools to identify patients at increased risk of unplanned readmission. ⋯ Clinicians can use the RI to help target hospital programs and supports to patients at highest risk of readmission.
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National attention is increasingly focused on hospital readmissions. Little prior research has examined readmissions among patients who are homeless. ⋯ Patients who were homeless had strikingly high 30-day hospital readmission rates. These findings suggest the urgent need for further research and interventions to improve postdischarge care for patients who are homeless.