Short Stay in an Outpatient Department

A short stay unit (SSU) based in an outpatient department providing evaluation or care or both is an alternative to traditional inpatient care of children. The unit admitted 437 patients during a one-year study period. Of these, 58% were discharged within 24 hours and 42% required hospitalization. This represents an average of 20.6 prevented hospital admissions per month or a saving of 2,480 hospital days for the study period. Length of stay was less than 16 hours for 80% of the patients. Of those discharged, a little more than 1% required subsequent hospitalization. There were no fatalities. Children with asthma (154), gastroenteritis (86), those admitted for ingestion (47), and for observation (36) constituted 74% of all children in the unit. Our data demonstrate the usefulness of an SSU in an ambulatory setting and its effectiveness in preventing hospital admissions.