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Discharge guidelines

Summary

Demand for public hospital specialist clinics (outpatient) services is growing, driven by an ageing population, the increasing burden of chronic disease and rising community expectations. In addition, changing hospital practices have led to much shorter inpatient stays for many medical and surgical conditions and a focus on managing patients on a non-admitted basis where possible. Therefore, as well as experiencing growth in overall demand, specialist clinics now need to manage higher acuity patients and more complex clinical interventions.

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Owner:
Acute Health Services Program,
Performance, Acute Programs and Rural Health,
Hospital and Health Service Performance,
Department of Health
50 Lonsdale Street,
Melbourne, Victoria, 3000
Telephone: (61 3) 9096 9000