Little is known about the follow-up healthcare needs of patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) after hospital discharge. Due to the unique circumstances of providing transitional care in a pandemic, post-discharge providers must adapt to specific needs and limitations identified for the care of COVID-19 patients. In this study, we conducted a retrospective chart review of all hospitalized COVID-19 patients discharged from an Emory Healthcare Hospital in Atlanta, GA from March 26 to April 21, 2020 to characterize their post-discharge care plans. A total of 310 patients were included in the study (median age 58, range: 23-99; 51.0 female; 69.0 African American). The most common presenting comorbidities were hypertension (200, 64.5), obesity (BMI >= 30) (138, 44.5), and diabetes mellitus (112, 36.1). The median length of hospitalization was 5 days (range: 0-33). Sixty-seven patients (21.6) were admitted to the intensive care unit and 42 patients (13.5) received invasive mechanical ventilation. The most common complications recorded at discharge were electrolyte abnormalities (124, 40.0), acute kidney injury (86, 27.7) and sepsis (55, 17.7). The majority of patients were discharged directly home (281, 90.6). Seventy-five patients (24.2) required any home service including home health and home oxygen therapy. The most common follow-up need was an appointment with a primary care provider (258, 83.2). Twenty-four patients (7.7) had one or more visit to an ED after discharge and 16 patients (5.2) were readmitted. To our knowledge, this is the first large study to report on post-discharge medical care for COVID-19 patients.
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