COMPARISON WITH PUBLISHED STUDIES
The findings of the present study need to be considered
within the context of the existing published literature.
Previous studies30-33 demonstrated reductions in rehospitalization
rates for older chronically ill adults and for
patients with specific conditions, such as congestive
heart failure, through advanced practice nurse– and
pharmacist-led interventions. In a recent Cochrane
review34 of 8 controlled trials of discharge planning
involving 4837 patients, 4 trials recruited patients with a
particular medical condition and 4 trials recruited
patients with a mix of medical and surgical conditions.
There was a reduction in hospital length of stay for older
patients allocated to discharge planning, but overall the
results of the trials were mixed