Patient discharge

In health care, patient discharge is "the administrative process of discharging the patient, live or dead, from hospitals or other health facilities"

One study found that approximately 20% of older hospitalized Medicare patients are readmitted within 30 days (only 10% of these readmissions were planned), while a second study found that 20% of recently discharged patients may have adverse events after hospital discharge. The costs are substantial.

Common adverse events after discharge include:
 * Drug toxicity which is the most common reason.
 * Abnormal diagnostic tests that are reported after hospital discharge
 * Inadequate communication between inpatient and outpatient physicians.

Coordinated interventions may reduce the rate of readmission of adult patients within 30 days from 21% to 15%.