TITLE:
Changes in Inpatient Hospital Utilization at the Community Level
AUTHORS:
Ronald Lagoe, Shelly Littau
KEYWORDS:
Hospitals, Hospital Inpatients, Adult Medicine, Adult Surgery
JOURNAL NAME:
Case Reports in Clinical Medicine,
Vol.13 No.9,
September
5,
2024
ABSTRACT: This study demonstrated that numbers of hospital inpatient discharges have declined in the metropolitan area of Syracuse, New York. The largest impact has been in adult medicine and adult surgery, the hospital services with the highest utilization rates. Reductions in inpatient care have also affected services with lower utilization, such as pediatrics, obstetrics, and mental health. The study indicated that, between January - June 2019 and 2024, adult medicine discharges declined by 11.9 percent and adult surgery discharges declined by 24.6 percent. A large proportion of the reductions involved orthopedic surgery. They indicated that more than 50 percent of the joint replacements in the Syracuse hospitals have been moved to outpatient services. These patients included those with low severity of illness. The study suggested that reductions in hospital discharges could contribute to the efficiency of care. Fewer inpatient admissions could reduce the need for staffing and other resources. Information from the Syracuse hospitals has suggested that these reductions may continue.