Equivalent Lengths of Stay of Pediatric Patients Hospitalized in Rural and Nonrural Hospitals

Abstract
Background. Many children receive their care at local hospitals outside of a large urban area. There may be differences in the length of stay (LOS) between children hospitalized in rural versus urban hospitals. This study compared the differences in LOS, conditional LOS (CLOS), odds of prolonged stay, and 21-day readmission rates for children with 19 medical conditions and 9 surgical procedures admitted to rural, community, and large urban hospitals.