The Medical journal of Australia
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To determine whether adherence to hip fracture clinical care quality indicators influences mortality among people who undergo surgery after hip fracture in New South Wales, both overall and by individual indicator. ⋯ Clinical care for two-thirds of hip fractures attained a high level of adherence to the six quality care indicators, and short and longer term mortality was lower among people who received such care than among those who received low adherence care.
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To examine the impact of breathlessness on quality of life, health care use, productivity loss, and economic costs in Australia. ⋯ Breathlessness imposes major burdens on individuals, the health care system, and the economy.
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To assess the direct hospital costs for unplanned re-admissions within 30 days of hospitalisations with heart failure in Australia; to estimate the proportion of these costs attributable to potentially preventable re-admissions. ⋯ Unplanned re-admissions after hospitalisations with heart failure are expensive, incurring costs equivalent to 32% of those for the initial hospitalisations; a large proportion of these costs are associated with potentially preventable re-admissions. Reducing the number of unplanned re-admissions could improve outcomes for people with heart failure and reduce hospital costs.
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To examine the frequency of re-admissions to non-index hospitals (hospitals other than the initial discharging hospital) within 30 days of admission with acute myocardial infarction in New South Wales; to examine the relationship between non-index hospital re-admissions and 30-day mortality. ⋯ The geographically dispersed Australian population and the mixed public and private provision of specialist services means that re-admission to a non-index hospital can be unavoidable for people with acute myocardial infarction who are initially transferred to specialised facilities. Non-index hospital re-admission is associated with better mortality outcomes for people from regional or remote areas.