Patients in Denmark are returning home from hospital quicker than in the rest of western Europe.
New figures from the national patient register show that patients in Denmark are spending an average of just 3.5 days in hospital after being admitted. This represents a decrease since 2009, where hospitalisations were an average of 4.1 days.
Improved procedures
Ulla Astman, the chairman of the health committee in the Danish regional organisation Danske Regioner, told Jyllands-Posten that the reason behind the shorter hospitalisation periods may be due to more efficient and less intrusive surgeries and procedures. “The development in Denmark is in many ways satisfactory,” she said.
“The reasons for the shorter hospitalisations is often that the processes have improved.”
Good to come home soon
Grete Christensen, the head of the Danish nurses’ organisation Dansk Sygplejeråd, said that this was good news for patients. “For many patients it is good to come home soon,” she said.
“It encourages more movement, and it is better psychologically to be in more familiar surroundings than in a hospital environment.”
The length of hospitalisation in North Jutland was significantly higher than the national average, at 4.2 days.
