Medicare patients who receive treatment in hospitals with a positive work environment for nurses are linked to a 10 percent lower chance of readmission than patients treated in hospitals with a poor work environment, according to new research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing.
Researchers examined data from more than 200,000 nurses and 412 hospitals in California, Pennsylvania and New Jersey to determine the likelihood of 30-day readmission for Medicare patients over the age of 65 with heart failure, heart attack and pneumonia. Respectively, readmission rates were 7 percent, 6 percent and 10 percent lower for those patients when treated in hospitals with good work environments.
"Our results suggest that improving nurses' work environment and reducing nurses' workload are organization-wide reforms that could result in fewer readmissions for Medicare beneficiaries with common medical conditions," lead study author Matthew McHugh, PhD, JD, a health policy expert at Penn Nursing, said in the release.
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Researchers examined data from more than 200,000 nurses and 412 hospitals in California, Pennsylvania and New Jersey to determine the likelihood of 30-day readmission for Medicare patients over the age of 65 with heart failure, heart attack and pneumonia. Respectively, readmission rates were 7 percent, 6 percent and 10 percent lower for those patients when treated in hospitals with good work environments.
"Our results suggest that improving nurses' work environment and reducing nurses' workload are organization-wide reforms that could result in fewer readmissions for Medicare beneficiaries with common medical conditions," lead study author Matthew McHugh, PhD, JD, a health policy expert at Penn Nursing, said in the release.
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