Comparisons of Clinical Outcomes between Weekday-Only and Full-Time, 24-Hour/7-Day Coverage HospitalistSystems

• Published in: Journal of Korean medical science 2020, 35(18), , pp.1-7
• Main Authors: Seung Jun Han, 정희원, 오도연, Jae Hyun Lee, 문성도, 이선혜, 윤정환
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 의학일반
• ISSN: 1011-8934; 1598-6357
• DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e117

Background: Since the launch of pilot programs in 2016, varying ranges of hospitalist coverage exist in Korea. We evaluated the effects of differing depths of hospitalist coverage on clinical outcomes. Methods: This study retrospectively reviewed the records of 513 patients admitted to a medical hospitalist unit through emergency department at Seoul National University Hospital. The full- time group included patients admitted in 2018 who received 24/7 hospitalist service, whereas the weekday group included patients admitted in 2019 with only weekday hospitalist service. In-hospital clinical outcomes were compared between the two groups. Results: Unplanned intensive care unit admission rate was lower in the full-time group than in the weekday group (0.4% vs. 2.9%; P = 0.042). Discharges to local hospitals for subacute or chronic care were more frequent in the full-time group than in the weekday group (12.6% vs. 5.8%; P = 0.007). The weekday coverage was a predictive factor of in-ward mortality (odds ratio, 2.00; 95% confidence interval, 1.01–3.99) after adjusting for potential confounding factors. Conclusion: Uninterrupted weekend coverage hospitalist service is helpful for care-plan decision and timely care transitions for acutely and severely ill patients. KCI Citation Count: 7