Changes in hospital mortality associated with residency work hour regulations

Abstract

The health effects resulting from the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education resident work-hour regulations are largely unknown. Shetty and Bhattacharya measured inpatient mortality before and after the implementation of the work-hour regulations in 1 268 738 patients admitted to 551 U.S. hospitals with medical diagnoses and 243 207 patients who were admitted with surgical diagnoses. Inpatient mortality in medical patients\u97but not surgical patients\u97decreased more in teaching hospitals than in nonteaching hospitals after the work-hour regulation