Colorectal surgery patients who have their surgery done at a high-volume hospital are more likely to be discharged home for recovery, according to an article in JAMA Surgery.
Analysis of nearly 281,000 patients from more than 1,000 hospitals who had colorectal surgery in 2008 showed patients in high volume hospitals were significantly more likely than patients at low-volume hospitals to be discharged home instead of to a skilled facility. For patients with further post-discharge needs, high-volume hospitals were more likely to discharge them to home health care settings than skilled facilities.
The study confirms high-volume hospitals are associated with better surgical outcomes. Researchers concluded more studies are needed to determine the mechanisms through which high-volume hospitals are able to facilitate more desirable outcomes.
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