Your mom is being discharged. The nurse hands you a stack of papers, rattles off some instructions, and suddenly you’re wheeling her out to the car, wondering if you caught everything.
Sound familiar?
Here’s what nobody tells families: the most dangerous part of a hospital stay isn’t the surgery or the illness that brought your loved one there. It’s what happens in the first 72 hours after they leave.
Why the First 72 Hours Matter
Research shows that readmission rates peak in the first few days after discharge—not weeks later. For patients with conditions like COPD, the highest readmission rates occur within that initial 72-hour window.
The numbers are sobering. About one in five patients experiences some kind of adverse event after leaving the hospital. The most common culprit? Medication issues. And roughly two-thirds of those problems were either preventable or could have been caught earlier.
Think about what’s happening during those first days home: new medications to manage, activity restrictions to remember, warning signs to watch for, and follow-up appointments to schedule. Your loved one is exhausted. You’re overwhelmed. And the hospital staff who knew everything about their care? They’ve moved on to the next patient.
What Goes Wrong
Most readmissions aren’t random bad luck. They follow predictable patterns:
Medication confusion. The discharge instructions say one thing, the pill bottles say another, and nobody explained which old medications to stop taking. As a pharmacist, I’ve seen this happen more times than I can count.
Falls and injuries. Patients overestimate what they can do. They try to get to the bathroom alone at 2 AM, or they skip using the walker because it feels like giving up.
Missed warning signs. That shortness of breath seemed minor. The swelling in her ankles wasn’t that bad. By the time someone calls 911, they’re back where they started.
Dehydration and poor nutrition. Cooking is exhausting when you’re recovering. So is getting up to get a glass of water. Small things add up fast.
What Actually Helps
The difference between a successful recovery and a trip back to the ER often comes down to one thing: having the right support in place before discharge, not after something goes wrong.
That means someone who can be there to help with mobility, remind about medications, prepare meals, and—most importantly—watch for changes that need attention. Not medical care, necessarily. Just an extra set of hands and eyes during the riskiest window.
At Options Home Care, we offer a Hospital-to-Home program specifically designed for this 72-hour period. Our caregivers provide one-on-one support that covers medication reminders, mobility assistance, meal preparation, and monitoring for any changes in condition. It’s intensive support at a discounted rate because we know these first few days are when it matters most.
If Your Loved One Is Being Discharged Soon
Don’t wait until you’re in the parking lot to figure out the plan. Ask the discharge planner about home care options. Get the medication list reviewed by a pharmacist—not just handed to you. And be honest about how much support will actually be available at home.
If you’re not sure what level of care makes sense, we can help you figure it out. We work with families, discharge planners, and healthcare providers every day to make sure the transition home is safe.
Call us at (336) 213-1467or visit our Discharge Planning page to learn more about our Hospital to Home program.
The first 72 hours shouldn’t be the hardest part of recovery. Let’s make sure they’re not.
