An evaluation of international patient length of stay

While increasing attention has been given to patients traveling internationally for medical care, hospitals face unique challenges in caring for international patients that may increase hospital length of stay (LOS) and cost of care. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether there are variations in LOS by home region of origin for international patients traveling to the USA. This was a retrospective, cross-sectional study using patient-level discharge data from academic medical center members of University HealthSystems Consortium (UHC). The sample included 4517 international patients discharged between October 2008 and March 2012 from academic medical center members of UHC. Generalized linear regression models were fit to test the association between the LOS and country of home origin, controlling for patient demographic and clinical characteristics. Significant variation in LOS existed across countries of home origin. In the adjusted model, Saudi Arabian and Egyptian home origin were associate...