Transitional care interventions aim to ensure continuity of care during the transfer of patients from one care setting to another. Hospital readmission is a potentially preventable consequence in 5,5 % of patients leaving a hospital medical service, often resulting from poor coordination between health care providers. In this article, we describe the risks associated with hospital discharge, and how to identify patients at high risk of readmission by using the HOSPITAL score. New transitional care approaches are currently being developed, such as the extensivist doctor or the possibility of being hospitalized in a hotel, and may provide new perspectives in this area.