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Biomedical subjects

R B Fetter

Publications and source records attributed to R B Fetter.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Casemix classification systems.

The idea of using casemix classification to manage hospital services is not new, but has been limited by available technology. It was not until after the introduction of Medicare in the United States in 1965 that serious attempts were made to measure hospital production in order to contain spiralling costs. This resulted in a system of casemix classification known as diagnosis related groups (DRGs). This paper traces the development of DRGs and their evolution from the initial version to the All Patient Refined DRGs developed in 1991.

Abstracting and Indexing↗
PubMed1995

Diagnosis-related group refinement with diagnosis- and procedure-specific comorbidities and complications.

Diagnosis-related groups have been revised through more refined uses of secondary diagnoses. Under the refined diagnosis-related groups, patients are distinguished with respect to classes of secondary diagnoses that are disease- and procedure-specific. Each class represents a different level of utilization for a given principal diagnosis or surgical procedure. The refined system was evaluated with national data from the Medicare program. Estimates of hospital costs and utilization based on refined diagnosis-related groups were more precise than those based on unrefined diagnosis-related groups. This approach to diagnosis-related group refinement does not represent a radical departure from the current diagnosis-related group framework and does not require new data collection efforts. Moreover, a payment system based on the refined model is less affected by the ordering of the diagnoses than under the existing diagnosis-related group system. How the refined diagnosis-related group framework can accommodate future refinements at all levels of the classification scheme is also discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Inventors of DRGs look at PPS now. Interview by Marybeth Burke.

The inventors of diagnosis-related groups talk about what's happened to their invention, both in the U.S. and abroad. DRGs were used as the basis for Medicare's prospective payment system, but John D. Thompson and Robert B. Fetter, winners of the 1992 Baxter Foundation Prize for Health Services Research, say things haven't turned out exactly as they'd expected.

Awards and Prizes↗
PubMed1992

Hospital payment based on diagnosis-related groups.

The Prospective Payment System (PPS) used by Medicare to pay hospitals is described. As Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRGs) are central to this system, they are described in some detail. While the results achieved by PPS have been impressive, opportunities to both improve and extend the approach are present. Problems with the approach are described, together with alternatives to direct payment.

Diagnosis-Related Groups↗
PubMed1990

Procedure codes: potential modifiers of diagnosis-related groups.

Proposals to make complexity-of-illness adjustments to the diagnosis-related group system have relied on secondary diagnosis codes and additional clinical information obtained from the hospital record. Another potential mechanism for modifying diagnosis-related groups involves the use of non-operating room procedure codes. The use of these codes has the advantage of reliably identifying costly subgroups of patients and thus the potential to provide for fairer compensation to hospitals caring for the sickest patients. There are a number of disadvantages, however, and therefore the criteria with which to evaluate procedures as potential modifiers are suggested.

Abstracting and Indexing↗
PubMed1989

Improving DRGs. Use of procedure codes for assisted respiration to adjust for complexity of illness.

Medicare's diagnosis related groups (DRGs) payment system has been criticized for not making adequate allowances for severity of illness differences within DRGs. The respiratory diseases major diagnostic category (MDC) has been a particular target; therefore, ability of several procedure codes that identify patients with assisted respiration (temporary tracheostomy, endotracheal intubation, and mechanical respiratory assistance) to identify high-cost patients in that MDC was examined. Total charges were used as the dependent variable in a 10% sample of Medicare hospital discharges from 1985. A consistent and strong association was found between the procedures and total charges for both Medicare "outliers" and "nonoutliers." Patients requiring either intubation or mechanical respiratory assistance had average charges two to three times higher, and patients with tracheostomy four to five times higher than charges for patients without assisted respiration. Patients with assisted respiration tended to resemble each other more than they resembled the other patients in their respective DRGs without assisted respiration. These findings provide the basis for recent revisions in Medicare's classification scheme for the respiratory diseases MDC.

Connecticut↗
PubMed1988

Nursing home reimbursement and the allocation of rehabilitation therapy resources.

Most public funding methods for long-term care do not adequately match payment rates with patient need for services. Case-mix payment systems are designed to encourage a more efficient and equitable allocation of limited health care resources. Even nursing home case-mix payment systems, however, do not currently provide the proper incentives to match rehabilitation therapy resources to a patient's needs. We were able to determine by a review of over 8,500 patients in 65 nursing homes that certain diagnoses, partial dependence in activities of daily living (ADLs), clear mental status, and improving medical status are associated with the provision of rehabilitation services to nursing home residents. These patient characteristics are clinically reasonable predictors of the need for therapy and should be considered for use in nursing home case-mix reimbursement systems. Primary payment source also was associated with the provision of rehabilitation services even after taking into account significant patient characteristics. It is unclear how much of the variation in service use across payers is due to differences in patient need as opposed to differences in the financial incentives associated with current payment methods.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1987

Case mix of public patients in skilled nursing facilities in Connecticut.

The case mix of publicly funded residents in 73 skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) in two Connecticut counties was examined. Data collected in 1980-1981 for utilization review by a professional standards review organization were used for the analysis. The findings indicate that considerable variation exists in case mix across the SNFs. Medicaid per diem rates, which are based on historic costs, have a low and negative correlation with case mix. Case mix indices are significantly higher for rural facilities, with a for-profit type of ownership, and with less than 75% of the bed days devoted to Medicaid residents.

Connecticut↗
PubMed1986

Diagnosis related groups: product line management within hospitals.

The hospital is viewed as a human service enterprise whose primary function is the provision of diagnostic and therapeutic medical services. Its products are the specific sets of services provided to individual patients. A system for defining hospital products based on the characteristics of patients receiving similar sets of services has been developed and is referred to as Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs). The system is described, and its implications for improved hospital management are discussed.

Accounting↗
PubMed1985

DRGs: how they evolved and are changing the way hospitals are managed.

Medicare uses Diagnosis-related Groups for prospective hospital payments nationwide, but the groups were not originally intended as such. The authors trace the development of this landmark program and explore the concept of product line management. Dr. Fetter, a leading authority in health care resource allocation, developed the entire framework for DRGs as a method to predict hospital resource requirements. He is currently extending the DRG concepts to outpatient and long-term care facilities. This article is adapted from Dr. Fetter's presentation at the Bridgeport Symposium entitled "Performance Requirements for Clinical Laboratories Under Prospective Reimbursement and DRGs." The Nov. 15-16, 1984 symposium was sponsored by Bridgeport Hospital, Bridgeport, Conn., and supported by contributions from 20 companies (listed on page 29). Portions of this article are also based on a presentation by Drs. Freeman and Mullin at the Tri-Service Performance Measurement Conference, June 11-15, 1984, sponsored by the Army Medical Department.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗
PubMed1984

Variation in resource use within diagnosis-related groups: the severity issue.

Several authors have suggested that diagnosis-related groups (DRG's) make inadequate allowance for the severity of illness. Before modifications of DRG's are developed, the sources of within-group variation must be precisely defined; not all variation is attributable to the severity of illness. The limitations of the Uniform Hospital Discharge Data Set (UHDDS), of the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification coding system and of the original rules of DRG construction must be evaluated and, if necessary, corrected before new approaches to groupings are considered. The most promising potential modifications of existing groups and weights are those that make use of the UHDDS, or of the UHDDS plus additional diagnoses and procedures. The addition of entirely new data elements to the discharge abstract and the pricing process should be considered only as a last resort.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗
PubMed1984

Ambulatory visit groups: a framework for measuring productivity in ambulatory care.

This article describes Ambulatory Visit Groups (AVGs) and the process by which they were defined. An approach to the analysis of physician productivity in the ambulatory setting is then demonstrated, with data derived from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey [1]. Finally, recommendations for future work are presented to make this approach more effective in designing and managing ambulatory care delivery organizations.

Ambulatory Care↗