SHM Converge Scientific Abstract ePoster Gallery-Collection of a Health Confidence Measure by Social Workers to Help Assess a Patient's Hospital Utilization and Post-Acute Care Needs

Pdf Summary

This study examined whether the Health Confidence Score (HCS), a short patient-reported measure, can be collected during routine hospital care by social workers and used to identify patients at higher risk for longer stays, readmission, and post-acute care (PAC) needs.<br /><br />The HCS was added to the initial social work assessment for adults admitted to a general medicine service at a large academic medical center between July 11 and August 30, 2024. Social workers collected the score along with social and discharge-related information. The team then linked these data to hospital length of stay (LOS), 30- and 90-day readmissions, and discharge disposition. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, ANOVA, and regression models.<br /><br />A total of 50 patients were included. Their average HCS was 7.24, which was significantly lower than the mean score seen in a prior research population (9.19). The average hospital stay was 8.08 days. Thirty percent of patients were readmitted within 30 days, and 42% within 90 days. Higher HCS was associated with shorter length of stay: each 1-point increase in HCS corresponded to 0.44 fewer hospital days. Patients with higher confidence were less likely to be readmitted within 30 days, though this was not seen at 90 days. Lower HCS was also associated with greater PAC needs compared with discharge home.<br /><br />Overall, the findings suggest that measuring health confidence in routine clinical practice is feasible and useful. The clinical approach identified more patients with low confidence while showing similar associations with utilization outcomes as prior research. The authors conclude that incorporating patient-reported measures like HCS into usual care can help identify patients at risk for more intensive post-acute needs and worse hospital outcomes.

Asset Subtitle

Ashley E. Brown

Meta Tag

Author List Andrew W. Schram, Ashley E. Brown, David O. Meltzer, Matthew T. Cerasale, Nicole Muellerschoen

Category Research

Concept Health Confidence Score

Concept Length of Stay

Concept 30-Day Readmission

Concept Patient-Reported Measure

Concept 90-Day Readmission Rate

Distinguished Non-Finalist

Presenter Organization University of Chicago

Presenting Author Ashley E. Brown

Track Translating Research into Practice

Keywords

Health Confidence Score

patient-reported measure

social work assessment

hospital length of stay

readmission risk

post-acute care

general medicine service

routine clinical practice

discharge disposition

health outcomes

Health Confidence Score

Length of Stay

30-Day Readmission

Patient-Reported Measure

90-Day Readmission Rate