Adhering to evidence-based clinical practice guidelines results in lower readmission rates in Brazilian private hospitals

Abstract

Background/Aims In clinical practice, an evidence-based approach is viewed as a pathway to creating a sustainable healthcare system. As such, many leaders in private hospitals still regard evidence-based approaches as tools to curtail length of stay. This article aimed to evaluate the impact of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines on the quality of care in Brazilian private hospitals. Methods The adherence to evidence-based clinical practice was compared to hospital readmission rates through a linear regression model. A machine learning clustering algorithm was applied to classify the hospitals according to these measures. Results The linear regression model showed a reverse correlation between adherence to evidence based clinical practice and readmission rates. The algorithm distributed the 83 hospitals into two groups, following the same pattern, with an additional finding suggesting an optimal hospital size for quality measures. Conclusions This article suggests that an evidence-based approach is associated with higher quality of care, by showing that hospitals following evidence-based guidelines have lower readmission rates than those who do not.