Clinical utility of scores on the Blaylock Risk Assessment Screen (BRASS): An analysis of administrative data.

Purpose: Project was undertaken to examine the utility of the Blaylock Risk Assessment Screen (BRASS) in identifying patients who may experience discharge complications as indicated by longer hospital stays or readmission within 30-days of a discharge to home.

Background: Before measures can be put in place to facilitate discharge planning and to prevent unplanned readmission by recently discharged patients, those at risk of such events must be identified.

Methods: Project involved an analysis of 13-months of administrative data from one tertiary care hospital.

A partnership model evolves from a living inventory of engagement.

This university-community partnership developed when practitioners at a community health centre within a regional health authority collaborated with nursing faculty at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. A philosophical match and work context facilitated this collaboration. Partners acknowledged that continued maintenance of the partnership, or its termination, was dependent on the acceptance of principles of partnership engagement.