Discharge teaching, readiness for discharge, and post-discharge outcomes in cataract patients treated with day surgery: A cross-sectional study

Purpose: To investigate the quality of discharge teaching, readiness for hospital discharge (RHD), and post-discharge outcomes (PDO) of cataract patients in a day ward and to explore the relationships among these three variables. Methods: This cross-sectional study used an opportunistic sample from the ophthalmic day ward in a general hospital in Sichuan province, China. Data were collected using four questionnaires. Results: The total average score on the Quality of Discharge Teaching Scale was 192.95, and the dimension with the lowest score was "guidance obtained practically." The total average score on the Readiness for Hospital Discharge Scale was 175.51, and the dimension with the lowest score was "knowledge of disease." The total average score on the Post-Discharge Outcome Questionnaire was 77.08, and the four dimensions with the lowest scores were "compliance behaviors," "avoiding excessive use of eye," "avoiding strenuous exercise," and "regular check-up." Pearson correlation coefficients indicated low to moderate correlations between discharge teaching quality and PDO (0.245, P < 0.01), RHD and PDO (0.271, P < 0.01), and discharge teaching quality and PDO (0.559, P < 0.01). Conclusion: The quality of discharge teaching among cataract patients who underwent day surgery was relatively high, and patient preparation for discharge and PDO were good. However, medical staff should focus more attention on patients' individualized needs for discharge teaching while emphasizing the importance of compliance behavior.