title: 'Saturday flit, short sit'--a strong influence of a superstition on the timing of hospital discharges?
abstract: 'Saturday Flit, Short Sit' is a phrase recognised by 58% of our patient population. The superstition implies that leaving hospital on a Saturday is bad luck and will mean early re-admission to hospital. 13.7% of all patients interviewed would refuse to go home on a Saturday and 40% of doctors would allow postponement of discharge because of the patients superstition.
authors.affiliation: Mercer's Institute for Research on Ageing, St. James's Hospital, Dublin.
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Keane
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: O'Leary
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Walsh
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D010351:Patient Discharge; D010359:Patient Readmission; D013483:Superstitions