Behavior of hospital deaths and evaluation of their occurrence during the weekends in a health institution of third level in Mexico City, during 2007-2011

Abstract

Hospital mortality during the weekends has been widely studied; however, it is still controversial. Aspects of medical care in health institutions and specific factors to which individuals are exposed during weekends have been considered as its origin. Material and methods: an observational, transversal and descriptive study was conducted. We analyzed all deaths occurred at National Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery of Mexico City from 2007 to 2011, the frequency of occurrence with respect to t days of the week, various shifts of hospital care, and hospital services in which they occurred. Simple frequencies and measurements of central tendency were obtained; Chi2 was used to compare the proportions. Results: the mortality rate was 4 per each 100 discharges. There was no increment in mortality rate during the weekends; mortality rate was bigger on Mondays (17.7%). The largest number of deaths occurred during the night shift (p = 0.00006).