{"id":886,"date":"2016-11-09T11:29:11","date_gmt":"2016-11-09T11:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/template.assistinghands.com\/virginia\/alexandria\/hospital-readmission-penalties\/"},"modified":"2026-09-13T17:13:28","modified_gmt":"2026-09-13T17:13:28","slug":"hospital-readmission-penalties","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/assistinghands.com\/146\/virginia\/manassas\/hospital-readmission-penalties\/","title":{"rendered":"Hospital Readmission Penalties"},"content":{"rendered":"

The period following discharge from the hospital can be particularly difficult for older people. Factors contributing to that include new medication, problems with mobility, doctor visits, fatigue, and confusion over discharge instructions.<\/p>\n

Assisting Hands Home Care Manassas offers non-clinical assistance that is aimed to help seniors adhere to their discharge instructions, feel secure at home and cope with daily activities while recovering from the illness. Although home care services cannot prevent the patient\u2019s readmission to the hospital, it may help overcome certain issues associated with it.<\/p>\n

According to CMS, the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program<\/a> encourages hospitals to enhance communication and coordination of care and to involve the patient and his\/her family members in the process of discharge planning. This program tracks some cases of unplanned hospital readmissions that happen within 30 days of discharge.<\/p><\/div> <\/div>

\"Senior<\/div><\/div>
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What Is a Hospital Readmission?<\/h2>\n

What does the term hospital readmission mean? It usually indicates the process in which a patient is admitted into an acute care hospital following a discharge from a prior hospitalization.<\/p>\n

According to the definition provided by CMS via the Medicare Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program, readmission is defined as \u201can unplanned readmission to any participating hospital within 30 days of discharge.\u201d<\/p>\n

The more practical question for the families is: how to make the discharge experience safer and more efficient.<\/p>\n

And that is where planning and support comes into play.<\/div> <\/div>

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Why Are Older Adults at Risk of Returning to the Hospital?<\/h2>\n

There is rarely one single reason.<\/p>\n

After discharge, an older adult may be weaker than before hospitalization, may have new medications, or may need more help with walking, meals, bathing, or transportation.<\/p>\n

Some common challenges include:<\/strong><\/p>\n