Introduction: Reducing heart failure (HF) admissions is one of the main objectives in disease control, due to its impact on prognosis and costs. The transitional models at discharge are imposed as a strategy capable of reducing hospitalizations, most of them based on specific hospital units. We analyzed the impact of the primary care (PC) post-discharge follow-up.
Material and methods: Retrospective observational study at the referral area of a tertiary hospital. Linear regression analysis was performed between early follow-up from the PC center after HF admission rate and the 30-day all-cause readmission rate throughout 2021.
Results: The degree of follow-up from PC after hospital discharge for heart failure is associated with fewer 30-day readmissions for all causes (Pearson's R=0.53, P=.02); with a decrease of 20%, similar to that observed when it is performed from other care facilities and which is maintained when adjusting for the complexity of the patients.
Conclusions: PC heart failure post-discharge follow-up could be effective in reducing hospitalizations, and is complementary to that carried out by hospital units.
Keywords: Atención primaria; Avoidable readmission; Coordinación asistencial; Discharge planning; Heart failure; Insuficiencia cardiaca; Primary care; Reingreso evitable; Transición al alta; Transitions of care.
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