Meds‐to‐Beds: The impact of a bedside medication delivery program on 30‐day readmissions

Background In order to reduce Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)‐directed readmission penalties and improve patient discharge care, a bedside discharge medication delivery service was developed. Objective To evaluate the impact of a bedside discharge medication delivery and pharmacist consultation service (Meds‐to‐Beds; MtB) on 30‐day readmission rates at an academic hospital. Methods The pharmacist‐led MtB program was established in September 2016. Unplanned 30‐day readmission data and other disease severity indicators were retrospectively collected from September 2015 to January 2017. Readmission data were compared for patients discharged prior to availability of the MtB program vs patients who participated in the program. Results A total of 174 MtB patients and 170 control patients were included. There were significantly fewer 30‐day readmissions in the MtB group (n = 14, 8.0%) compared with the control group (n = 28, 16.5%, P = 0.02). MtB participation was found to decrease the odds of a 30‐day readmission (odds ratio = 0.40, 95% confidence interval 0.190, 0.843, P = 0.016). Conclusions A care transition program in the form of a bedside medication delivery and pharmacist consultation service was associated with a lower likelihood of 30‐day hospital readmission.