‘Very disappointing’ results on hospital discharge summaries: RACGP
A large NSW survey shows many patients leave EDs without a discharge summary, especially in rural areas
Hospitals are still failing to provide clinical handovers, a survey suggests, with fewer than half of rural NSW patients saying they received a discharge summary after being admitted to ED.
The Bureau of Health Information (BHI) 2021-22 patient survey showed just 43% of rural patients were sent home from ED with a discharge summary, although the figure rose to 74% in urban areas.
As one patient said: “Everything was good, apart from no letter provided to my GP.
“Only my blood results were sent to them. They didn’t know why I had presented to ED.”
