Inadequate information about pending medical tests during hospital discharges leads to botched transitions and possible medical errors, according to a new study.
Researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University School of Medicine found hospitals frequently neglected to include in discharge summaries that patients had tests ordered during their stay, and that the results would come after they left. In its study of 668 hospital discharges with pending test results, only 16% of 2,927 tests were mentioned in the discharge summary.
In addition, the discharge summaries often did not include directions about which doctors should receive post-discharge test results, with only 67% of summaries indicating the primary-care physician that was responsible for follow-up care, according to the study.
Test results that would lead to a change in the patient’s treatment plan were not mentioned in the discharge summaries as well, according to Martin Were, a physician who co-authored the study. “In the patient-safety arena, this is what you call a ‘fumbled handoff’—and it leads to medical errors,” Were said in a written statement. The study is published in the September issue of the
Journal of General Internal Medicine.
What do you think? Post a comment on this article and share your opinion with other readers. Submit your comments to Modern Healthcare Online at
mheditorial@modernhealthcare.com. Please be sure to include your hometown and state, along with your organization and title.
