Analysis of factors affecting discharge with the personal consent of hospitalized patients: A cross‐sectional study

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Discharge by personal satisfaction is a condition in which the patient leaves the hospital before completing the care period against medical advice. Thus, this study aims to identify and analyze the reasons for discharge with the personal satisfaction of hospitalized patients. METHODS: The study was descriptive‐analytical being performed in 2021. The study population was 2869 discharged inpatients with personal satisfaction. Sampling was done by random and census. The data were collected using a checklist and a researcher‐made questionnaire whose validity and reliability were confirmed. The data were analyzed using SPSS24 by K‐Score test for qualitative and variance for quantitative variables. RESULTS: The discharge rate by personal satisfaction was 7.01%, the average age was 42 years, and the average length of stay was 4 days. Further, 57.1% of patients were female, 63.7% were married, and 21% were babies. A total of 22.77% of the patients were discharged with the father's consent, of which 13.2% were re‐admitted. The most common reasons for the discharge were feeling of recovery (47.2%), the hospital being educational (30%), and dissatisfaction with the services of doctors (51.6%). Discharge with personal satisfaction had a significant relationship with the length of hospitalization (p < 0.001) and type of hospital (p = 0.04). CONCLUSION: The feeling of recovery, the educational nature of the hospital, and dissatisfaction with the services of doctors were the most common reasons for discharge with personal satisfaction. Therefore, monitoring the provision of services, establishing proper patient‐doctor communication, and increasing the awareness of patients and parents could reduce this type of discharge and its consequences.