Presentations

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer patients have higher rates of hospitalization and unplanned readmissions compared to the general population. Social determinants of health (SDOH) such as socioeconomic status, education, and social support play a significant role in hospital readmission rates and overall health; yet, SDOHs are rarely studied when examining hospital readmission rates. We hypothesize that SDOH can be a useful tool in determining hospital readmission rates among patients with cancer.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study of 3,237 adult patients (ages > 18 years) who were hospitalized at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital between February 2022 to November 2022. Patient demographics and hospitalizations were manually collected from the EPIC EMR. Descriptive statistics were used for demographic variables. We calculated N (%) for categorical variables and mean with standard deviation for categorical variables. The total sample size of our study is 340 patients with cancer. Multivariable logistic regressions were performed to assess associations between dependent and independent variables.

Results: Of the total 340 patients, there were more females compared to males (n=179, 52% vs. n=161, 47%), and more White patients (n=134, 39%) compared to Black patients (n=116, 34%) and Other racial groups (n=90, 26%). We will be calculating 90-day readmissions and 180-day readmissions in addition to 30-day readmissions, and anticipate that the readmission rates for 30 days will be higher for patients with cancer. The regional estimates for 90-day and 180-day readmissions are unknown. We anticipate a higher rate of unplanned readmissions among cancer patients compared with other patients.

Conclusion: Addressing social determinants through targeted interventions such as increasing access to outpatient care and providing referrals to community-based resources to socioeconomically vulnerable patients can potentially reduce readmission rates and improve overall patient outcomes.