803 - Social and Medical Factors Related to Long Acute Hospitalizations for Children with Cerebral Palsy

Friday, February 20, 2026

5:00 PM - 6:30 PM AST

Co-Author(s)

CC

Christina Cawood, BA

Medical Student
SUNY Upstate Medical University
Syracuse, New York, United States
EB

Emily Butler, BS, BA

Medical Student
Upstate Medical University
Syracuse, New York, United States
KD

Katherine Draper, RN, MPH

Disability and Health Senior Researcher, Department of PM&R
Upstate Medical University
Syracuse, New York, United States

Presenting Author(s)

JH

Jessi Hammond, MD

Clinical Assistant Instructor HS
Upstate Medical University
Syracuse, New York, United States

Co-Author(s)

MT

Margaret A. Turk, MD

Vice-Chair; SUNY Distinguished Service Professor
State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical University PM&R Program
Syracuse, New York, United States

Submitter(s)

CC

Christina Cawood, BA

SUNY Upstate Medical University
Syracuse, New York, United States

Objectives: To explore underlying reasons for long acute hospital lengths of stay (LOS) for children with cerebral palsy (CP) related to demographics/health status, hospital services, social characteristics.

Design: Retrospective chart review of patients with CP age < 18yrs with >14 day acute hospitalization from January 2023 to March 2024 was conducted. Variables included demographics (age, sex, race), clinical variables (type of CP, comorbidities, therapy services, consults, procedures, surgeries), and social factors (insurance type, Vizient® Variability Index sub-variable groups [VVI, identifies social needs/obstacles over 9 social domains]).

Results: Of the 30 patient charts reviewed, most were male (56.7%), Caucasian (66.7%), and diagnosed with quadriplegia (13.3%). Average age was 10.7 years (12yrs with quadriplegia, 4yrs with hemi/paraplegia). Average LOS was 38.3 days with an intensive care unit (ICU) stay of 17.5 days. Patients received PT (63.3%)/OT (43.3%), averaged 3 procedures and 0.5 surgeries. Patients with quadriplegia had a nonsignificant longer ICU LOS (M=20.2) than hemi/paraplegia (M=7.5); similarly patients with private insurance had a non-significantly longer ICU LOS (M=18.6) than those with Medicaid (M=16.6). Discharge features included home services (73.3%), new equipment (56.7%), and an average of 17.4 prescribed medications. Higher VVI, reflecting greater social vulnerability, was observed among non-white (0.55 vs -0.89 on average, p < .001) and male patients (-0.16 vs. -0.72, p = .04), and was significantly associated with more consults (r(28) = .48, p < .001) and fewer discharge medications (r(28) = -.40, p = .04).

Conclusions: The high need for services and equipment at discharge underscores this population’s complexity and highlights that vulnerable groups may face greater challenges to timely discharge. A hospital program to support early identification of certain patient characteristics along with possible barriers (e.g., equipment delays, inadequate home support, insurance approvals) may inform quality improvement strategies to reduce prolonged hospitalizations and optimize discharge planning.