The health literacy of hospitalized trauma patients: We should be screening for deficiencies.

Background: Although the impact of health literacy (HL) on trauma patient outcomes remains unclear, recent studies have demonstrated that trauma patients with deficient HL have poor understanding of their injuries, are less likely to comply with follow-up, and are relatively less satisfied with physician communication. In this study, we sought to determine if HL deficiency was associated with comprehension of discharge instructions.

Methods: In this prospective study, hospitalized trauma patients underwent evaluation of HL prior to discharge.

Community Need Index (CNI): a simple tool to predict emergency department utilization after hospital discharge from the trauma service.

Background: Emergency department (ED) visits after hospital discharge may reflect failure of transition of care to the outpatient setting. Reduction of postdischarge ED utilization represents an opportunity for quality improvement and cost reduction. The Community Need Index (CNI) is a Zip code-based score that accounts for a community's unmet needs with respect to healthcare and is publicly accessible via the internet.