Leaving hospital is not enough: New Scottish Care research reveals the human cost of poor hospital transitions
New report highlights concerns over communication, discharge planning and patient wellbeing as Scottish Care calls for action to ensure safer, more dignified transitions
A new report from Scottish Care has highlighted concerning experiences of people moving between hospital and social care, including reports of distress, confusion and deterioration, warning that getting someone out of a hospital bed must never be the only measure of a successful discharge. Launched today (Friday 13 November) at Scottish Care’s National Care Home Conference & Exhibition in Glasgow, Beyond the Hospital Door: Making hospital transitions work for people and social care draws on research with independent social care providers across Scotland. It identifies recurring challenges with communication, medication, discharge planning and recognition of people’s changing care needs.
Among providers responding to relevant survey questions: 77% reported limited communication or updates during hospital stays 66% reported little or no advance notice of discharge 64% identified anxiety, distress or confusion among the impacts experienced by people they supported 79% reported additional staff time spent chasing information or resources The research highlights how gaps in communication and preparation can leave people returning to care settings without essential information or arrangements fully in place. Providers also reported instances of pain, discomfort or deterioration, alongside additional pressures on social care staff working to resolve outstanding issues.
Behind those figures are individual experiences. In one particularly concerning case reported to the research, a clinically frail person admitted to hospital with aspiration pneumonia returned to their care home five days later with limited transfer information. Their usual medicines had not returned, antibiotics were provided without instructions, they had a catheter which had not previously been in place, had lost 3kg and had significant pressure damage which the provider said had not been communicated.
The impact was not only clinical. The provider reported that the person’s daughter was left regretting the decision to seek hospital treatment.
The case is one reported experience and was not independently verified, but several of its features were reflected across the wider research. Among providers answering the discharge questions, 66% reported changed needs not being clearly recognised or planned for, 58% reported late or incomplete information, and 53% reported problems around medication changes.
Professor Donald Macaskill, Chief Executive of Scottish Care, said:
“A successful discharge cannot simply mean that someone has left a hospital bed. It must mean that they have arrived safely into the next stage of their care, with the information, medication and support they need.
“Our research shows that too often this is not happening consistently, and the human cost is anxiety, confusion, distress and on occasion real decline and deterioration.
“We want to work constructively with the NHS and other partners to change that, because safe and dignified transitions should never depend on social care staff having to chase the information and resources people need.”
Creating the conditions for better care The report is being launched as almost 400 care providers, policymakers, practitioners and sector leaders gather at the Hilton Hotel in Glasgow for Scottish Care’s National Care Home Conference & Exhibition.
Under the theme The Home That Care Creates, this year’s conference explores the vital contribution of care homes to people’s lives and communities, alongside the challenges of sustaining high-quality, person-centred care. The programme brings together political discussion, sector perspectives and practical innovation, considering how care can become more visible, viable, valued and visionary.
The hospital transitions research reinforces a central message of the conference: care homes are not simply destinations following hospital discharge, but places where people live, maintain relationships and receive essential care and support. Their expertise must be recognised in decisions affecting those they support.
Scottish Care’s report calls for a more consistent and joined-up approach to hospital transitions, built around compassion, communication and consistency. Recommendations include a shared minimum standard for safe transitions, earlier involvement of social care providers in planning, improved information sharing and clearer responsibility for ensuring essential support is in place.
While recognising the considerable pressures facing NHS services and the importance of reducing unnecessary hospital stays, Scottish Care stresses that improving hospital flow must not come at the expense of people’s safety, dignity or continuity of care.
The report also identifies examples of positive local collaboration and improvement, demonstrating opportunities to build on existing practice.
Scottish Care is calling on the Scottish Government, NHS Boards, Health and Social Care Partnerships and independent providers to work together to ensure that successful transitions are measured not simply by whether someone leaves hospital, but by whether they arrive safely, with their needs understood and the right support ready.
Notes for editors
About the research
Beyond the Hospital Door draws on a September 2026 survey of independent adult social care providers, which received 42 submitted responses, including 40 from respondents with recent hospital transition experience. Findings were explored further through a focus group involving 16 Scottish Care members and local sector representatives.
The survey was voluntary and unweighted. Findings reflect participating providers’ experiences and should not be interpreted as nationally representative estimates of hospital transitions across Scotland.
Full report: https://scottishcare.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/Beyond-the-Hospital-Door-Scottish-Care-Research-Report-1.pdf
