Effect of Psychological Factors on GP Follow-Up and Short-Term Hospital Readmission Among Older Inpatients’ with Comorbid Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes

Abstract

Life expectancy at birth is increasing in Australia, alongside the prevalence of chronic conditions and comorbidity. This places a heavy burden on patients, carers, and our healthcare system. Minimal research has assessed psychological risk factors for non-adherence and hospital readmissions in patients who have comorbid cardiovascular disease and diabetes, yet these commonly co-occur, particularly in older adults, and are associated with increased hospitalizations. This longitudinal cohort study aims to explore psychological risk factors for non-adherence (failing to attend a general practitioner follow-up appointment after hospital discharge) and short-term hospital readmission in older adult inpatients (N = 36, M = 67.78 years) with cardiovascular disease and diabetes, recruited from a public hospital in Australia. Results indicated that GP follow-up and readmission were not related, and no gender differences were found. CHLOC (OR = 0.82) and PHLOC (OR = 0.82) predicted non-adherence. Depression (r = -.23) and stress (r = -.10) increased likelihood of readmission, however logistic regression analyses found none of these significantly predicted readmissions. These findings help to inform the risk factors of non-adherence and short-term readmissions in older adults with comorbid cardiovascular disease and diabetes, which may help reduce the impact on our healthcare system.