Postdischarge Pediatric Primary Care “Connectivity” and 7-Day and 30-Day Readmission Rates

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study is to evaluate the relationship between early postdischarge primary care follow-up and 7-day and 30-day hospital readmissions. METHODS: Patients birth through the 21st year of life discharged from a tertiary care, free-standing pediatric hospital between July 1, 2018, and June 30, 2022, were included in this study. A case management assistant telephonically confirmed completion of postdischarge primary care appointments. Readmissions to the hospital within 7 and 30 days were measured. Those readmitted before they could complete their scheduled postdischarge appointment were excluded. Logistic regression models assessing the relationship between postdischarge follow-up and readmissions were built controlling for demographics, proxies of social determinants of health, and severity of illness. RESULTS: A total of 20 066 hospital discharges qualified for the study. The regression models indicate that there were statistically significant reductions in both 7-day and 30-day readmissions for the group that successfully completed the follow-up primary care clinician appointment vs the group that did not (0.8% vs 1.9% for 7-day and 5.4% vs 7.0% for 30-day). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that focusing on timely visits with primary care clinicians following admission to the hospital may have a beneficial effect on readmission rates at 7 and 30 days, respectively.