Effectiveness of disharge phone calls on postpartum patients to decrease 30-day readmission rate

In the United States, childbirth represents a significant reason for hospitalizations among reproductive women. There is potential for postpartum complications that may require the mother to go back to the hospital for needed treatment after discharge. Early postpartum interventions have shown promise in reducing the rates of readmission. One such intervention is to conduct a discharge phone call to support the transition from frequent prenatal visits and hospital stay monitoring to home. The discharge phone calls present an opportunity to enhance patient education and care, which could potentially lower readmission rates. Early recognition and interventions have proven to improve overall morbidity and mortality for postpartum women. This program evaluation assessed whether implementing discharge phone calls within seven days would reduce the 30-day all-cause readmission rate among postpartum women aged 18 years and older at a tertiary care hospital. A quasi-experimental, pre-post design compared data collected from March 2023 to August 2023 with data from March 2024 to August 2024. Retrospective chart reviews were utilized to capture readmission data and related variables. Discharge phone call data was collected using the healthcare system network standard discharge phone call form. The findings suggest that timely discharge phone calls can enhance post-discharge care by addressing patient concerns and reducing the likelihood of readmission.