Comparison of Care and Cost Outcomes for Stroke Patients With and Without Home Care

Abstract

This study was undertaken to compare care and cost outcomes of stroke patients who received home care with those who did not receive home care at St. Luke's Hospital Medical Center, New York, New York. Twenty-five home care stroke patients were matched by age and sex with 25 comparable stroke patients receiving no home care during 1971. After nine months' follow-up, stroke patients who received home care had shorter hospital stays (average, ten days less), overall costs greatly reduced (average, $3,450 for home care patients versus $8,300 for comparison group), fewer readmissions for recurring strokes, and fewer deaths (two versus nine). At the end of nine months, home care patients were located as follows: 20 at home, two on home care, one in a nursing home, and two were dead. The comparison group showed: eight at home, one at an extended-care facility, seven in nursing homes, and nine were dead. The differences in care and cost outcomes between these two groups have considerable implications for patients, hospitals, physicians, and third party payers.