What a transitional care hospital is
The link between acute care and home care, explained by the sector's association.
A transitional care hospital is the health institution that cares for patients recovering from acute illness who are not yet able to return home — with multidisciplinary teams specialised in recovery and rehabilitation programmes, in a calmer and more welcoming environment.
The patient's journey
Between the acute care hospital and care at home.
Stage 1
Acute care hospital
Handles the acute phase of the illness.
Stage 2
Transitional care hospital
The middle stage: receives the patient who has come through the acute phase and runs recovery and rehabilitation programmes, preparing the return home.
Stage 3
Home care
Continues the care at the patient's home.
Despite having a profile of its own, the transitional care segment currently sits within the regulatory framework for general acute care hospitals. ABRAHCT argues for the creation of a specific classification for the sector — understand the regulatory agenda in Committees.
Who it is for
The patient who has come through the acute phase — but still needs care.
The transitional care hospital treats patients recovering from acute illness who are not yet able to return home. It is the stage at which the patient no longer requires the structure of an acute care hospital, but still needs continuous care before moving on to home care or to normal life at home.
In this setting, the institution also supports families and carers at a moment of high care demand — with the family actively involved.
The team
A whole team around the patient.
Transitional care units work with multidisciplinary teams specialised in recovery and rehabilitation programmes. The interdisciplinary team in these units brings together:
- Physicians
- Nurses
- Physiotherapists
- Speech and language therapists
- Occupational therapists
- Dietitians
- Psychologists
- Social workers
The model worldwide
Where the model comes from.
According to the sector's own account of its history, transitional care hospitals emerged in Europe and North America in the late 1980s, out of the need for continuity of care in a hospital setting for patients with functional loss and a high degree of dependency. By those accounts, European countries and Canada are said to have between 10% and 25% of their hospital beds in the transitional care category.
In Brazil, the model is still being established: in the private sector, the existing units account for a little over 1% of all private hospital beds. ABRAHCT's August 2023 survey recorded 2,745 beds dedicated to transitional care in the country — growth of 101.6% on the 1,361 beds of 2018.
ABRAHCT survey released in August 2023, compared with the 1,361 beds in operation in 2018.
Glossary
Many names, one and the same care.
Transitional care clinic
A designation that the association's own name places alongside transitional care hospital — Brazilian Association of Transitional Care Hospitals and Clinics. On this site, both terms refer to the same units.
Step-down hospital
A service listed in ABRAHCT's membership categories alongside transitional care clinics and hospitals and palliative care: full members work mainly in the provision of transitional care, step-down and palliative care services.
Transitional Care Unit (UTC)
The designation used in the Sector Diagnosis, the national mapping of these units released by Medicina S/A in April 2025.
Post-acute care / transitional care
Expressions that describe the stage of care these units serve: after the acute phase of the illness and before the return home or the move to home care.
ABRAHCT represents the sector — it does not provide care.
The association does not arrange admissions or recommend treatment. A referral for admission is always made by the medical team caring for the patient. If you are looking for a unit for a relative or a patient, see the member institutions and contact each one directly.
Frequently asked questions
The most searched questions.
What is a transitional care hospital?
It is the health institution that cares for patients recovering from acute illness who are not yet able to return home. It sits between the acute care hospital and home care, with multidisciplinary teams specialised in recovery and rehabilitation programmes.
Are a transitional care hospital and a transitional care clinic the same thing?
On this site, yes: the association's own name — Brazilian Association of Transitional Care Hospitals and Clinics — brings both designations together, and they refer to the same type of unit.
What is the difference between a transitional care hospital and home care?
The transitional care hospital is an inpatient unit: the patient stays at the institution, accompanied by a multidisciplinary team, in recovery and rehabilitation programmes. Home care continues the care at the patient's home. The transitional care hospital is the link between acute care and home care.
Who is a transitional care hospital for?
For patients who have come through the acute phase of an illness but are not yet able to return home. The referral is always a decision of the medical team caring for the patient — ABRAHCT is the sector association and does not provide care or recommend treatment.
Which professionals work in a transitional care hospital?
The interdisciplinary team in these units brings together physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, dietitians, psychologists and social workers, with the family actively involved.
What is a step-down hospital?
It is one of the services that ABRAHCT's membership categories list alongside transitional care clinics and hospitals and palliative care. Full member institutions work mainly in these services.
What does UTC mean in Brazilian health care?
UTC is the Portuguese acronym for Transitional Care Unit — the designation used in the Sector Diagnosis, the national mapping released by Medicina S/A in April 2025.
How long does a stay in a transitional care hospital last?
It depends on each case and on the decision of the team caring for the patient. As a sector reference, the Sector Diagnosis released by Medicina S/A in April 2025 recorded an average stay of 57 days across the units mapped.