Demographic Predictors of Inpatients’ Postdischarge Stay in Referral Hospitals in Kisumu County, Kenya

Abstract Introduction Globally, inpatients continue to unnecessarily prolong their stay in referral hospital wards upon their medical discharge. This causes congestion in wards, hospital reinfection, relapse, death of PDS inpatients, and financial burden to hospital management. The literature links postdischarge stay (PDS) to economic reasons. This study aimed to investigate the demographic predictors of inpatients’ postdischarge stay in Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospitals (JOOTRH) and Kisumu County Referral Hospital (KCRH) in Kisumu County, Kenya. Methodology This study adopted a correlational cross-sectional research design. A stratified sampling technique was used to select inpatients in the 14 wards, after which systematic random sampling was used to reach the individual PDS inpatients for interviews. To establish the predictors of PDS, binary logistic regression analysis was used, where p values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant, and odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were reported to show the magnitude and influence of PDS, resulting in a total sample size of 133 participants. Results The majority 72 (54.13%) of the respondents in this study were female. In the age cohort, 43 (32.33%) were aged 20–29 years, 24 (18.05%) were aged 30–39 years, 20 (15.04%) were aged 0–9 years, 17 (12.78%) were aged 40–49 years, 11 (8.27%) were aged over 60 years, and 7 (5.26%) were aged 50–59 years. In terms of marital status, 40 (30.08%) of the respondents were married, 22 (16.54%) were single, 20 (15.04%) were divorced/separated, 16 (12.03%) were widowed, 9 (45.00%) were partial orphans, 8 (40.00%) were both parents, and 3 (15.00%) were total orphans. Most of the respondents 74 (55.64%) had chronic diseases, while 59 (44.36%) had acute illnesses, among which the majority 88 (66.17%) had reached the primary level; hence, 86 (64.66%) unemployed respondents Conclusion Individual demographic factors associated with the vulnerability of PDS inpatients to becoming PDS victims in referral hospitals. Elderly individuals, males, unmarried individuals, and chronically ill individuals were more at risk of experiencing episodes of PDS. Older people with complex health needs are particularly vulnerable to PDS. Additionally, males, especially middle-aged individuals, are associated with deviance, rendering them social misfits who face neglect due to their social relationships in hospital wards and thus PDS. The chronically ill were perceived as burdens by their family members, whereas the unmarried experienced PDS due to insufficient social support. Whereas the parental status of the children, religiosity, education, and employment status of the PDS inpatients were insignificant to the study, they were not dismissed because they determined the general health outcomes of the PDS.