Educating Caregivers Reduces Hospital Readmissions

The Affordable Care Act, introduced in 2012, created the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program which imposed monetary sanctions on hospitals that exceeded the benchmark for readmissions for six pre-established diagnoses. Heart Failure was and remains the number one diagnosis for 30-day readmissions. The focus of this project was to educate caregivers of patients having heart failure with the goal of reducing 30-day readmissions to the hospital. The desired outcome was a reduction in the penalties levied by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Education is and remains the key to positive outcomes in healthcare. Whether it is the patient or their caregiver, increasing their knowledge base and providing the tools necessary to enhance the delivery of care the results are the same, e.g., improved quality of life. The project demonstrated that education, which was provided in many forms and through various venues, resulted in a reduction of 30-day readmissions for heart failure patients at the project site. The project also demonstrated that, regardless of monetary sanctions, education results in positive outcomes and improved quality of life and that the project can be replicated to include other diagnoses that have heretofore demonstrated negative health outcomes