Yuna Kishimoto

There are many risks attached to patient hospitalisation which patients are often not aware of. One area of example is the increased risk of developing a Venous Thromboembolism. Even younger patients hospitalised for a one-off acute presentation are still at risk. This information is however, not widely communicated to patients. Healthcare professionals often miss the chance to communicate the risks to patients as they are focused on the primary cause of hospitalisation and gaining consent for procedures and medications.
Additionally, its harder for patients to understand the risks as they are preoccupied with making decisions relating to their immediate hospitalisation. Even if it has been communicated to patients, it may not be their main priority. This is also due to the fact that as the risk occurs usually in the future, patients and healthcare professionals focus on the problems in the present.
Its essential to train health professionals in informing patients of all the risks attached to hospitalisation. More data is needed to inform patients and to make the data and information more transparent.