The relationship of weekend admission and mortality on the public medical wards at a Kenyan referral hospital.

Background: Research has demonstrated disparities in the outcomes of patients admitted to hospital on weekends in high-income countries. No published research has evaluated if any similar discrepancy exists in low-resource settings.

Methods: To determine if any difference in mortality exists between weekend and weekday admissions on the public medical wards at a Kenyan referral hospital, we performed a retrospective observational study of inpatients over a 3-month study period.

The association between insurance status and in-hospital mortality on the public medical wards of a Kenyan referral hospital.

Background: Observational data in the United States suggests that those without health insurance have a higher mortality and worse health outcomes. A linkage between insurance coverage and outcomes in hospitalized patients has yet to be demonstrated in resource-poor settings.

Methods: To determine whether uninsured patients admitted to the public medical wards at a Kenyan referral hospital have any difference in in-hospital mortality rates compared to patients with insurance, we performed a retrospective observational study of all inpatients discharged from the public medical wards at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya, over a 3-month study period from October through December 2012.