Geographic Differences in Potentially Preventable Readmission Rates in Rural and Urban Hospitals

This study examined rates of potentially preventable hospital readmissions in three environments: urban prospective payment system hospitals, rural prospective payment system hospitals and critical access hospitals to determine 1) if rates of readmission differ between these types of organizations and 2) if patient demographics or clinical severity impacts these readmissions rates. In their analysis, the authors included the four conditions with the highest rates of rural admissions: congestive heart failure, bacterial pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and kidney infection/urinary tract infection. Analyses and results specific to COPD are included.