ARE SHORT-STAY ADMISSIONS TO AN ACUTE GENERAL MEDICAL UNIT APPROPRIATE - WELLINGTON-HOSPITAL EXPERIENCE

Aim. This audit was performed to ascertain whether the admission of pa tients to the General Medical Unit (Wellington Hospital) for one day o r less was appropriate. Methods. Between 1 July 1996 and 30 June 1997, 494 patients were admitted to General Medicine for one day or less. T he medical records for a random sample of 245 patients were reviewed. A modification of the Oxford Bed Study Instrument was used to assess t he appropriateness of admission. Results. Twenty admissions (8.2%) wer e deemed inappropriate, six patients could have been referred to medic al outpatients, four were known epileptics who presented following a s eizure, and none of the others merited admission on severity criteria. Ten patients were triaged after 10.00 pm, when discharge becomes more difficult. Forty-two patients required an investigation which delayed discharge. Conclusion. With the present community and investigation f acilities available, there is no evidence that the majority of 24-hour admissions to acute General Medicine are inappropriate.