Clinical-decision unit observation unit patients experienced a 35 percent shorter length of stay than medical-surgical observation patients, according to a study in the Journal of Hospital Medicine.
Researchers at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, N.J., created a 20-bed CDU to determine if it affected length of stay.
They found the average length of stay for CDU patients was 17.6 hours, compared to 26.1 hours for medical-surgical observation patients.
Additionally, CDU patients had a similar 30-day readmission rate as medical-surgical observation patients.
Researchers conclude CDU length of stay decreases without increasing readmission rates.
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