Intra‐hospital transfers to a higher level of care: Contribution to total hospital and intensive care unit (ICU) mortality and length of stay (LOS)

Authors:
  • JGJohn D. Greene
    John D. Greene
  • MGMarla N. Gardner
    Marla N. Gardner
  • GMGregory P. Marelich
    Gregory P. Marelich
  • BQBryon Quick
    Bryon Quick
  • PKPatricia Kipnis
    Patricia Kipnis
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Patients who experience intra‐hospital transfers to a higher level of care (eg, ward to intensive care unit [ICU]) are known to have high mortality. However, these findings have been based on single‐center studies or studies that employ ICU admissions as the denominator.OBJECTIVE: To employ automated bed history data to examine outcomes of intra‐hospital transfers using all hospital admissions as the denominator.DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study.SETTING: A total of 19 acute care hospitals.PATIENTS: A total of 150,495 patients, who experienced 210,470 hospitalizations, admitted to these hospitals between November 1st, 2006 and January 31st, 2008.MEASUREMENTS: Predictors were age, sex, admission type, admission diagnosis, physiologic derangement on admission, and pre‐existing illness burden; outcomes were: 1) occurrence of intra‐hospital transfer, 2) death following admission to the hospital, 3) death following transfer, and 4) total hospital length of stay (LOS).RESULTS: A total of 7,868 hospitalizations that began with admission to either a general medical surgical ward or to a transitional care unit (TCU) had at least one transfer to a higher level of care. These hospitalizations constituted only 3.7% of all admissions, but accounted for 24.2% of all ICU admissions, 21.7% of all hospital deaths, and 13.2% of all hospital days. Models based on age, sex, preadmission laboratory test results, and comorbidities did not predict the occurrence of these transfers.CONCLUSIONS: Patients transferred to higher level of care following admission to the hospital have excess mortality and LOS. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2010;. © 2010 Society of Hospital Medicine.

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