Being re-admitted back into the hospital due to arrythmias

[catwoman]

Canon:
My husband had a-fib while in the hospital after MV repair. I had tachycardia on & off for about 2 months after my MV replacement. Arrhythmias are very common after OHS -- just think: They stop your heart and then have to restart it and all the parts must align and work together harmoniously.
The surgeon gave my husband amiodarone for several days in the hospital without immediate results & sent him home on warfarin for 7 months. I had been on warfarin for 4 years by then. In my case with the tachy, it was the post-op BP meds that were the cause. Once I was off them, my heart settled down.
Good luck with getting your arrhythmia under control quickly.

 

[Julian]

Canon: I feel your frustration with your re-admission. As you can tell from other comments, it happens more than anyone wants.

Julian: I don't really think the re-admission issue can be explained by $$$. Hospital re-admission rates are seen as a marker for health care quality and are publicly reported. As a result, hospitals do work hard to minimize such re-admissions. In my local hospital, having a patient re-admitted can be the basis for a physician losing their privileges at the hospital. -- Suzanne

I may have worded it wrong. People are let go from the hospital too early sometimes. I was not referencing to the readmit. Point is this patient PROBABLY should have never left so early in the first place. I don't know what experience you have in hospital revenue cycle but where I come from its a dangerous race to get patients out of the bed ASAP so the facility can make money on a new case. NEXT!

 

[SuzanneSLO]

I may have worded it wrong. People are let go from the hospital too early sometimes. I was not referencing to the readmit. Point is this patient PROBABLY should have never left so early in the first place. I don't know what experience you have in hospital revenue cycle but where I come from its a dangerous race to get patients out of the bed ASAP so the facility can make money on a new case. NEXT!

This was my experience as well in the past, but I think it is changing. Some of that change is coming from Medicare tracking patient readmissions. I think this trend will increase as the new healthcare law even imposes a penalty for "excessive" readmissions.

While there are questions about how many readmissions can be controlled, it does seem to give the healthcare team a better ability to push back against the insurance companies.

When discussing my discharge date with my surgeon and his PA, I was given the option to stay another night. When I elected early discharge, the PA came back to my room to verify that no one was coercing me to leave early. In the past (for different procedures), one felt like begging and pleading would have been needed to even have the chance to stay another night. -- Suzanne