IMPLEMENTATION OF DISCHARGE PLANS FOR CHRONICALLY ILL ELDERS DISCHARGED HOME

Although discharge plans are viewed as the primary means to ensure tha t patients' needs will be met in the posthospital environment, little is known about the implementation of arranged care. This study address ed the extent to which discharge plans for elderly patients with conge stive heart failure were implemented as planned, tested the consequenc es of implementation problems, and identified factors associated with implementation problems. For 40 percent of patients, one or more compo nents of the discharge plan were not implemented as planned, with disc repancies more likely among low-income patients. Implementation discre pancies had negative consequences in terms of unmet needs, deficient q uantity of help, and less than adequate care. Implications for hospita l discharge planners and home health care are discussed.