Evaluation of discharge documentation after hospitalization for stroke patients discharged home in Australia: A cross-sectional, pilot study

Abstract

In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated the quality of discharge documentation for stroke patients discharged home. Participants were stroke patients discharged from a regional tertiary acute and rehabilitation hospital in Australia from 2014 to 2015. Compliance with expected discharge documentation and its relationship with readmission was measured using an audit instrument for stroke patients (n = 54), and a post-discharge survey of carers was conducted. There were deficits in the documentation of the mechanism of stroke (70%), functional assessments (58%), pending test results (39%), types of support services required after discharge (35%), and patient/carer meetings with the multi-disciplinary stroke team (20%). Readmission was associated with lower compliance scores for information provided to patients or their carer. The survey results suggested that carer burden was high for carers of stroke patients discharged home. Documentation of carer/family meetings with the stroke team, functional assessments, medications, and adequate support services needs to be improved. General practitioners and carers need this information, so that they can address the post-discharge needs of these vulnerable patients.

Keywords: carer; continuity of care; discharge; stroke; transitional care.