title: Impact of a national campaign on hospital readmissions in home care patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Assess impact of nationwide home health quality improvement campaign to reduce acute care hospitalization of home health recipients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Observational pre-post comparison of self-selected participating and non-participating agencies' quality performance; survey to determine uptake of program materials.
  
  
  METHODS
  US home health care agencies.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 147 agencies with 147 non-participating agencies matched on patient length of service, pre-intervention hospitalization rate and pre-intervention rate of change in hospitalization rate.
  
  
  METHODS
  Public events; provision of educational packages and technical assistance; quality measure feedback.
  
  
  METHODS
  Post-intervention difference in risk-adjusted acute care hospitalization rate between participants and non-participants; difference in self-reported campaign material use between agencies whose hospitalization rate declined 2% or more and those whose rates increased by 2% or more.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Hospitalization rate had a negative trend beginning before the campaign. In the matched pairs studied, it did not differ significantly between participants and non-participants, or from pre- to post-intervention period (28% in every case). Agencies that improved were more likely to report activities consistent with the campaign and using campaign interventions than those not improving (P < 0.001), regardless of participation status.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Merely agreeing to participate in the campaign did not improve performance, but effective participation through adoption of campaign methods did.
authors.affiliation: West Virginia Medical Institute, 3001 Chesterfield Place, Charleston, WV 25304, USA. cschade@wvmi.org
authors.forename: Charles Price
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Schade
authors.forename: Eve
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Esslinger
authors.forename: Donna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Yinghua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Bethany
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Knowles