Assessment of the incidence and reasons of discharge against medical advice in the hospitals of Rafsanjan University of Medical sciences in 2012-2013

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  Introduction : Discharge against medical advice or leaving the hospital before the due data, is a problem in the health systems. Patients who leave hospital against medical advice may be at risk of adverse health outcomes and readmission. In this study we examined reasons of discharge against medical advice (DAMA) in the teaching hospitals of Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences in one years.   Material and Methods : This study is a descriptive –analytic study. The study sample consisted of all 7308 patient who were released upon their own desire. A check list was used to gather data and SPSS software and descriptive statistical methods were used for data analysis.   Result: DAMA rate was 11/24 percent in which 3658 (50/1%) patients were male and 62/2 % were married. The mean age of the patients was 33/43 ± 2/2. There was no difference in the mean age in the genders at the hospitals. The most common reason was addiction (43%) and then improvement in the disease (32/7 %). 88/9% patients were admitted for less than 24 hours. The emergency ward had the highest DAMA.   Conclusion : In this study the DAMA rate was considered to be high and the most common reasons included patient's problems. Informing the patients about the treatment process can be a step towards reducing DAMA , particularly in the heart disease and poisoning patients.

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