Introduction: Hospital readmission is considered one of the key indicators of healthcare quality and hospital performance. It serves as a critical marker of the effectiveness of care delivery. Achieving a high level of healthcare quality is a universal goal across societies.
Children who are readmitted to hospitals experience twice the length of stay and ۲.۳ times higher costs compared to those without readmission, particularly when the subsequent admission occurs in a different hospital. Studies have shown that readmissions increase the length of hospitalization and impose additional costs on patients, hospitals, and insurance organizations. These costs can be prevented through strict adherence to treatment protocols, standardization of hospital processes and tools, staff training, and the use of modern diagnostic and therapeutic methods. Identifying the causes and factors contributing to pediatric readmissions and developing strategies to reduce them can improve the quality of care, enhance patient satisfaction, and alleviate suffering. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted in scientific databases and search engines including Direct Science, Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Medline using the keywords: readmission, children, quality of care in both Persian and English. Studies published between ۲۰۱۳ and ۲۰۲۳ were reviewed. Findings: The search yielded ۸۸ articles, of which ۱۲ were included in the final review. Across studies, the prominent role of caregivers and nurses in patient care positioned them ideally to identify and correct errors in discharge planning prior to patient release. Early involvement in discharge planning allows more time to develop an organized discharge program, providing opportunities for families and children to participate in preparation, education, planning, and decision-making. The most common causes of pediatric readmissions include incomplete treatment, disease recurrence, new illness, canceled surgery, surgical complications, inadequate treatment, infection, treatment failure, postoperative infection, voluntary discharge, and misdiagnosis. These factors often reflect incomplete initial treatment, non-adherence to treatment protocols, and lack of standardized hospital tools and facilities. Discussion and Conclusion: Based on the findings, post-discharge education for children and families, awareness of the importance of treatment follow-up, greater attention by clinical staff to patients’ healthcare needs, and informing hospital managers about the costs of readmission, along with comprehensive hospital planning, can be effective strategies. Multiple factors contribute to pediatric hospital readmissions, which can be broadly categorized into three domains: patient-related factors, clinical factors, and hospital-related factors.
