12.04.12
Time for bed
The NHS has promised to investigate the news that a large number of patients are being discharged from hospitals during the night, with many criticising the practice as being a possible method of freeing up beds.
But statistically there will always be a percentage of patients discharged between 11pm and 6am. This could be because they have reached a stable position, or because they wish to leave the hospital.
Our culture is still inextricably bound to the idea that hospitals are always the best place for patients to be. This is not necessarily true all the time. Sometimes patients want to go home. Sometimes spending a night there will not damage their condition.
While discharges that are not in the patients’ best interest should be dealt with appropriately, there will always be overnight discharges, and this is not something that warrants exaggerated concern.
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