Transition of Care for Post-COVID-19 Patients: Sociodemographic and Clinical Profile and Associated Factors

Abstract

This study aimed to identify sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and factors associated with care transition in patients recovered from COVID-19. Cross-sectional study of quantitative approach with 49 patients and/or caregivers who were discharged from hospital to home in a university hospital. Three instruments were used to evaluate the transition of care: the sociodemographic questionnaire, the clinical questionnaire, and the Care Transition Measure. The analysis was performed using SPSS software, and the Mann–Whitney test was applied, with a significance level of p ≤ 0.005 . Of the 49 participants, with a mean age of 50 years, the majority were males (59.2%), with more than 10 years of education. The main symptoms of COVID-19 were dyspnea (79.6%), followed by fatigue (75.5%) and fever (69.4%). The most prevalent comorbidity was hypertension (32.7%). There was an association between care transition and comorbidities (diabetes mellitus, obesity, and cancer) ( p < 0.005 ). The study found that the transition of care for patients recovered with COVID-19 from hospital discharge to home was successful. However, the need for public policy implementation after hospital discharge in a pandemic setting is emphasized.