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Demographic predictors of resource utilization for bleeding peptic ulcer disease: the Ontario GI Bleed Study.

Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) and its complications impose a substantial burden on health care resources. To help identify subpopulations in which preventative measures might achieve maximal cost savings, the authors studied the variation in resource utilization and cost for management of bleeding PUD among demographic subgroups. Resource utilization profiles and direct medical cost estimates were generated for consecutive admissions for bleeding PUD at four hospitals in southern Ontario via chart review and adaptation of an administrative cost database. Multiple linear regression models were developed to identify independent demographic predictors of direct medical case cost and hospital length of stay (LOS). Among 158 admissions, the average LOS and case costs were 5.73 days and $2,953 (Canadian) respectively. Age, comorbid illness, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, and the absence of prior PUD or upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage were associated with higher cost in univariate analysis, whereas increasing age and comorbidity predicted LOS. Only age and absence of prior PUD persisted as independent predictors of direct medical cost and LOS in a stepwise multiple linear regression. Costs for managing bleeding PUD vary substantially among demographic subgroups. More careful stratification of treatment costs is needed when economic models of interventions to prevent or to treat PUD are applied to specific subpopulations.

Adult↗

Infliximab decreases resource use among patients with Crohn's disease.

GOALS: Surgery accounts for one half, and hospitalizations for one third, of overall costs for patients with Crohn's disease (CD). Infliximab induces remission and heals fistulas in CD but is more costly than traditional therapies. Its impact upon resource use in CD is unknown. STUDY: The medical records were reviewed for all CD patients managed at our institution for at least 1 full year both before and after initial infliximab infusion. The incidences of hospitalizations, hospitalized days, surgeries, endoscopies, radiologic examinations, outpatient and emergency room (ER) visits were studied (weighted according to time period). RESULTS: There were 79 patients (59% female, mean age 38.6 years). A decrease was seen in the annual incidence of all surgeries (38%, p < 0.01), gastrointestinal (GI) surgeries (18%, p < 0.05), endoscopies (43%, p < 0.01), ER visits (66%, p < 0.05), all outpatient visits (16%, p < 0.05), outpatient GI visits (20%, p < 0.01), all radiologic examinations (12%, p < 0.01), and non-plain films (13%, p < 0.01). Fistula patients (n = 37) had decreases in hospitalizations (59%, p < 0.05); GI surgeries (59%, p < 0.01); all surgeries (66%, p < 0.01); all, GI, and surgical outpatient visits (27%, 26%, and 70%, respectively, p < 0.05 for all); ER visits (64%, p < 0.05); all radiologic examinations (40%, p < 0.05); and non-plain films (61%, p < 0.05). Patients with luminal disease(n = 42) had decreases in endoscopies (52%, p < 0.05), and ER visits (69%, p < 0.05). Patients of both genders and all ages experienced decreases in resource use. CONCLUSION: Patients with CD decreased their use of some services, with a decreased number of hospitalizations and a decrease in the use of surgical services seen primarily in the patients infused for fistulas. This decrease in use of healthcare resources raises the potential of overall cost savings in CD patients receiving this drug.

Adult↗

Reduced resource utilization through standardized outcome-focused care plans.

When evaluating ways to improve client outcomes, home healthcare administrators must consider the amount of resources used to provide the outcomes. Previous research has shown that outcome-focused care plans (OCPs) result in significantly better quality indicator scores than the traditional process-focused care plans (PCPs). The authors report the amount of resources used by a home healthcare agency when nursing care was guided by PCPs versus OCPs. The results showed that nurse visit time was less when OCPs were used. Outcome-focused care plans offer home healthcare administrators a mechanism to enhance quality while reducing resource utilization.

Diabetes Mellitus↗

Case-mix and resource use in long-term care.

This study developed a case-mix patient classification system for long-term care. Patient assessment and resource consumption data, collected for 1.151 patients within 23 hospital-based and freestanding long-term care facilities in California, were used to develop a patient classification system made up of 13 homogeneous patient groups. The 13 groups, formed on the basis of nine patient assessment variables, explained 68.5% of the overall variance in resource use. The relatively high variance reduction achieved in the creation of a limited number of groups demonstrates the feasibility of developing measures of case mix based on patient resource use for long-term care. Case-mix classification may provide a useful tool for long-term care reimbursement reform.

Activities of Daily Living↗

Case-mix classification of Medicare residents in skilled nursing facilities: resource utilization groups (RUG-T18).

Medicare residents in Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) represent a small but unique population about which little is known. Data collected in a national sample of 2,564 Medicare residents in 38 SNFs were used to derive a resident classification system appropriate for use in a payment system. The classification system, Resource Utilization Groups-Medicare (RUG-T18) explains 55.5% of the per-diem resource cost differences of Medicare SNF residents. No classification system could be derived to provide significant explanation of per-episode costs. Although Medicare residents are admitted to SNFs immediately following an acute stay that is paid according to their diagnosis-related groups, the DRGs were ineffective in explaining SNF resource costs.

California↗

The impact of physician involvement in managed care on efficient use of hospital resources.

OBJECTIVES: This research assesses the impact of managed care on the physician's efficient use of hospital resources. It examines three questions. (1) Does a higher percentage and volume of managed care patients in the physician's hospital practice lead to more efficient utilization? (2) Do physicians shift cost to nonmanaged care patients in an effort to compensate for lower reimbursement for managed care patients? (3) Are there threshold effects in the percentage and volume of managed care patients treated by physicians? METHODS: The study combines patient discharge data from the state of Arizona with physician and hospital data for a 2-year period. Random effects maximum likelihood (REML) regressions were performed for four different diagnosis classifications to examine the effect of the physician's managed care caseload on mean-adjusted charges and length of stay. RESULTS: The findings suggest that physicians with high percentages and volumes of managed care patients in their hospital practice are more efficient in using hospital resources. The findings also suggest that physicians may compensate for the lower reimbursement from managed care patients by increasing their resource use among non-health maintenance organization patients. CONCLUSIONS: Finally, there appears to be a threshold effect of managed care activity on the physician's hospital utilization in one of the conditions studied.

Arizona↗

Hospital costs, use of resources, and dynamics of death associated with diabetes mellitus.

The federal Medicare DRG (diagnosis-related group) system is entering its sixth year. The hospital industry contends that DRGs are under-reimbursing for the hospital care provided. Our analysis by outcome (ie, survival vs death) of 3,329 patients with insulin-dependent or non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus showed that the 242 diabetes-related deaths were associated with a much more intense use of hospital resources and a substantial financial risk under DRG pricing schemes, compared with the 3,087 diabetic survivors. Only deaths within one week of admission to the hospital were profitable under DRGs. Patients who died after a hospital stay of more than 60 days generated a loss of $28,377 per patient. Diabetic patients who died after emergency admission tended to have a shorter hospitalization and to pose less financial risk under DRGs than those who died after nonemergency admission. Those who died after referral from other clinical services tended to have greater use of resources and to pose greater financial risk under DRGs than those not referred. These data suggest significant inequities in the current Medicare DRG prospective payment system vis-à-vis deaths from diabetes. Long hospitalization, nonemergency admission, and referral from another clinical service were shown to be good predictors of greater use of hospital resources for diabetic patients who died. However, since hospitals are not compensated for the increased utilization, diabetic patients may suffer a decline in quality of and/or access to medical care in the future.

Adolescent↗

Effectiveness of a physician education program in reducing consumption of hospital resources in elective total hip replacement.

A physician education program altered the consumption of hospital resources by orthopedic surgeons doing total hip replacement. They were presented with verbal and written physician-specific materials during a 7-week period. Xbar and R charts were used to display measurements of resource consumption before and after the educational program. Physicians were provided with surgeon-specific data profiling their own practice and that of their peers. Inferential statistics were used to validate the effects of education. Length of hospital stay for patients receiving total hip replacement dropped from 13.7 days to 9.9 days. Adjusted total charges dropped from $22,103 to $18,607. The variance for length of stay and total charges dropped by one half or more. Physician education programs are effective in reducing consumption of hospital resources. Statistical process control data formatting appears to make the data more usable to these physicians.

Education, Medical, Continuing↗

Heartburn in Belgium: prevalence, impact on daily life, and utilization of medical resources.

BACKGROUND: Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is a frequently occurring disease that may be considered a public health issue, particularly in developed countries. The specificity of heartburn for the diagnosis of GORD is good. Our aim was to define the prevalence of heartburn in Belgium, characterizing both its impact on everyday life and the ensuing use of medical resources. METHODS: Two thousand people living in Belgium, selected randomly after stratification, were interviewed face to face. The main question in the questionnaire used in this interview concerned the presence over the previous 12 months of a burning sensation in the epigastric and/or retrosternal region. This was followed by 21 secondary questions on the characteristics of the population studied, the impact of heartburn on everyday life, and the medical resources used. RESULTS: Twenty-eight per cent of the population interviewed reported heartburn. This symptom was present at least once a week in 42% of sufferers. Heartburn was more frequent in women than men (P < 0.05) and was not distributed uniformly throughout the various regions of the country (P < 0.05). Seventy-seven per cent of the people with heartburn found that it had a significantly negative impact on their daily lives (in 27%, this effect was strong). Heartburn associated with a substantial negative impact on daily life was characterized by a higher frequency of symptoms (P < 0.0001), a longer duration of the problem (P = 0.006), and the presence of pain (P < 0.0001) and anxiety (P < 0.0001). Fifty-six per cent of individuals with heartburn had already sought medical advice, 45% had undergone an upper-gastrointestinal tract endoscopy, and 59% were taking medications. Among patients complaining that heartburn had a substantial negative effect on their everyday lives, 21.6% had not sought medical advice and 22.2% did not take any medication. CONCLUSION: Heartburn is very frequent in Belgium and is associated with a considerable negative impact on everyday life. It also generates a significant use of medical resources. However, among the patients complaining of a substantial negative effect on their daily lives, one-fifth (which would represent 1.5% of the Belgian population) seemed to lack appropriate care.

Adolescent↗

Resource use and costs of patients with glaucoma or ocular hypertension: a one-year study based on retrospective chart review in the Netherlands.

PURPOSE: To estimate resource use and costs associated with the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma and ocular hypertension in the Netherlands in 1996 and to determine how costs differed between patients, diagnoses, and hospitals. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patient characteristics and glaucoma-related resource use were collected for 500 patients with glaucoma or ocular hypertension from the medical records of 10 hospitals. Costs were calculated by multiplying the health care resource use of each patient with actual unit costs. Multiple least-squares regression was used to analyze the relationship between costs and patient characteristics, diagnosis, and type of hospital (general or academic). RESULTS: The mean annual frequency of visits to the ophthalmologist for patients with ocular hypertension and glaucoma was 2.43 and 3.74, respectively, and the mean cost per patient was $280 and $559, respectively. The mean cost of patients with glaucoma who had no changes in medication therapy was $347 and increased to $1,765 in patients with more than three adjustments in medication therapy. Outpatient visits to the ophthalmologist and medication contributed most to total costs. Regression analysis showed that costs were significantly related to intraocular pressure, diagnosis, severe excavation of the optic nerve head, and type of hospital. CONCLUSIONS: The costs of patients with glaucoma were twice as high as the costs of patients with ocular hypertension. Aside from diagnosis, differences in costs between patients could partly be explained by baseline patient characteristics. Patients in academic hospitals had more severe glaucoma and treatment was considerably more expensive than for patients in nonacademic hospitals.

Aged↗

Patient preferences, satisfaction, and resource use in office evacuation of early pregnancy failure.

OBJECTIVE: To examine patient treatment preferences and satisfaction with an office-based procedure for early pregnancy failure and to compare resource use and cost between office and operating room management of early pregnancy failure. METHODS: This study was a prospective observational study of 165 women presenting for surgical management of early pregnancy failure. Participants completed a preoperative questionnaire addressing treatment preferences and expectations and a postoperative questionnaire measuring level of pain experienced and satisfaction with care. Resource use was determined by measuring the time patients spent at the health care facility and the actual procedure time. Cost was estimated using an institutional database. RESULTS: One hundred fifteen women from the office and 50 from the operating room were enrolled. Patients selecting outpatient management scored "privacy," "avoiding going to sleep," and "previous experience" higher than the operating room group (P < .05). Patients who perceived that their physicians preferred one procedure over the other were more likely to select that procedure (P < .001). Satisfaction was high in both groups, and underestimating the procedure's discomfort was negatively associated with satisfaction (P < .002). Costs were greater than two-fold higher in the operating room group compared with the office group (P < .01). Complications were uncommon, but hemorrhage-related complications were four times more common in the operating room group than in the office group (P < .01). CONCLUSION: Office-based surgical management of early pregnancy failure is an acceptable option for many women and offers substantial resource and cost savings. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II-2.

Abortion, Incomplete↗

Relationship of pulmonary artery catheter use to mortality and resource utilization in patients with severe sepsis.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship of pulmonary artery catheter (PAC) use to patient outcomes, including mortality rate and resource utilization, in patients with severe sepsis in eight academic medical centers. DESIGN: Case-control, nested within a prospective cohort study. SETTING: Eight academic tertiary care centers. PATIENTS: Stratified random sample of 1,010 adult admissions with severe sepsis. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The main outcome measures were in-hospital mortality, total hospital charge, and length of stay (LOS) for patients with and without PAC use. The case-matched subset of patients included 141 pairs managed with and without the use of a PAC. The mortality rate was slightly but not statistically significantly lower among the PAC use group compared with those not using a PAC (41.1% vs. 46.8%, p =.34). Even this trend disappeared after we adjusted for the Charlson comorbidity score and sepsis-specific Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) III (adjusted odds ratio, 1.02; 95% confidence interval, 0.61-1.72). In linear regression models adjusted for the Charlson comorbidity score, sepsis-specific APACHE III, surgical status, receipt of a steroid before sepsis onset, presence of a Hickman catheter, and preonset LOS, no significant differences were found for total hospital charges (139,207 US dollars vs. 148,190, adjusted mean comparing PAC and non-PAC group, p =.57), postonset LOS (23.4 vs. 26.9 days, adjusted mean, p =.32), or total LOS in intensive care unit (18.2 vs. 18.8 days, adjusted mean, p =.82). CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with severe sepsis, PAC placement was not associated with a change in mortality rate or resource utilization, although small nonsignificant trends toward lower resource utilization were present in the PAC group.

APACHE↗

Toward a new payment system for inpatient rehabilitation. Part I: Predicting resource consumption.

BACKGROUND: The measures of clinical status used to predict costs must pay the most attention possible to medical conditions and clinical complexity. Length of stay (LOS), which has been used as a proxy for resource consumption, is not a direct measure of costs. Classification and regression trees, which are used in defining iso-resource groups, can be affected by overfitting and are based on a priori choices of the splitting attributes. Finally, current approaches are mainly concerned in estimating average group costs and do not attempt to estimate individual case costs. OBJECTIVES: We sought to define comprehensive measures of clinical status and detailed measures of resource consumption. We also sought to predict individual inpatient rehabilitation costs through multiple regression models. RESEARCH DESIGN: A prospective analysis was conducted of all rehabilitation cases admitted to 5 Italian inpatient facilities during a period of 12 months. All admissions underwent repeated Minimum Data Set-Post Acute Care (MDS-PAC) schedules to collect information on clinical status and treatment provided. We used factorial analysis to yield continuous variables representing clinical characteristics, and we priced treatments to obtain cost of stay. We used linear regression models to predict cost of stay and validated the model-based cost predictions by data-splitting. RESULTS: We collected 9720 MDS-PAC schedules from 2702 hospital admissions. The multivariate regression models fitted costs reasonably well with r(2) values of at least 0.34. On cross-validation, the ability of the regression models to predict cost was confirmed. CONCLUSION: We were able to estimate actual rehabilitation costs and define reliable regression models to predict costs from individual patient characteristics. Our approach identifies the contribution of any single patient characteristic to rehabilitation cost and tests the assumptions of the analysis.

Diagnosis-Related Groups↗

Tracheostomy in thermally injured patients: does diagnosis-related group 483 adequately estimate resource use and hospital costs?

BACKGROUND: This study compares burn and nonburn patients undergoing tracheostomy, all of whom were assigned to diagnosis-related group 483 to determine hospital reimbursement. METHODS: We reviewed the records of all inpatients admitted to our hospital from January 2000 through December 2001 who underwent tracheostomy and who were assigned to diagnosis-related group 483. In addition, we compared our burn patient data with that from three other burn centers and the National Burn Repository. RESULTS: We identified 357 inpatients who had tracheostomies during their hospitalization, only 12 of whom (3.4%) had acute burn injuries. The mean extent of burn in these patients was 43.4% total body surface area. The most frequent primary diagnoses for nonburn patients were injury and poisoning, and circulatory and respiratory disorders. Patients with burn injuries had 39.6 ventilator days, 40.7 intensive care unit days, and 49.2 hospital days compared with 19.8, 17.4, and 29.5 days, respectively, for nonburn patients (p <0.0001). Demographic, resource, and financial data for burn patients treated at the three other burn centers and those reported to the National Burn Repository were not significantly different from burn patients treated at our hospital. Total costs and charges for the care of burn patients were $186,830 and $343,904, respectively, compared with $82,176 and $160,498 for the nonburn patients (p <0.0005). CONCLUSION: Burn patients requiring tracheostomies during their acute hospitalization consume significantly more resources than patients without burn injuries. More appropriate resource-based reimbursement for the care of these patients appears warranted.

Adult↗

Terrorism preparedness: Web-based resource management and the TOPOFF 3 exercise.

BACKGROUND: The bombings of London on July 7, 2005 highlight the need for continued vigilance and readiness to respond to terrorist attacks. Trauma centers need to be at the core of preparedness activities. The State of Connecticut has taken a lead in preparedness and was selected as a site for the US Department of Homeland Security's Top Officials Three Exercise (TOPOFF 3), the largest and most extensive antiterrorism drill ever conducted. METHODS: All 32 acute care hospitals in Connecticut took part in the drill. The simulated attacks were designed to test all aspects of emergency preparedness including the ability of hospitals to treat large numbers of victims and effectively monitor and implement mechanisms for surge capacity. In Connecticut, TOPOFF 3 tested the Bioterrorism Preparedness Web Application that was designed to be the primary communication and resource management tool during a terrorist event or public health emergency. This paper describes: 1) the impetus for the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health's Bioterrorism Preparedness Web Application; 2) the strategies used to ensure its readiness and appropriate utilization during a public health emergency; and 3) its use for communication and resource management by the Department of Public Health and the acute care hospitals during TOPOFF 3. RESULTS: The Bioterrorism Preparedness Web Application was successfully implemented and used during TOPOFF 3 to assess surge capacity and other resources. CONCLUSIONS: Careful development and implementation of the Web application, or any communication system, as well as training and regular practice are required to ensure effective use during a public health emergency.

Bioterrorism↗

Artificial Intelligence for Colorectal Surgeons-Part II: Research Applications, Challenges in Adoption, and Practical Resources.

BACKGROUND: This is part II of a 2-part series examining artificial intelligence in colorectal surgery. Part I established foundational concepts and clinical applications. Implementation, however, requires understanding research methodologies, available resources, and the specific challenges currently limiting widespread adoption. These topics are the focus of part II. OBJECTIVE: To examine artificial intelligence's transformation of surgical research, provide practical implementation resources, address adoption challenges, and explore future directions in colorectal surgery. METHODS: Comprehensive literature review focusing on artificial intelligence research methodology, implementation barriers, educational resources, and emerging technologies relevant to colorectal surgeons. RESULTS: Artificial intelligence streamlines clinical trial design through predictive modeling and natural language processing, reducing enrollment challenges that contribute to failed or inadequate trial accrual. Machine learning enables heterogeneity analysis within clinical trials, identifying treatment-responsive subgroups. Foundation models unlock analysis of unstructured electronic health record data at scale. Professional societies and universities offer specialized artificial intelligence education programs, with open-access data sets facilitating research participation. However, implementation faces multifaceted challenges: technical infrastructure demands, with real-time processing requiring dedicated graphics processing unit clusters; regulatory frameworks struggling with continuously evolving algorithms; undefined liability distribution for artificial intelligence-assisted decisions; algorithmic bias risking health care disparities; and the "black box" problem limiting clinical trust. Economic barriers include substantial initial costs without clear reimbursement pathways. Future directions include multimodal artificial intelligence integrating imaging, genomics, and histopathology; cognitive robotic systems with real-time decision support; digital twin technology for patient-specific surgical simulation; and global surgical artificial intelligence networks enabling distributed learning across institutions. CONCLUSIONS: Although artificial intelligence offers transformative potential for colorectal surgery research and practice, successful implementation requires addressing technical, regulatory, ethical, and economic challenges. The surgeon's evolving role demands both traditional expertise and computational fluency. Future advances in multimodal integration, autonomous systems, and global collaboration will fundamentally reshape surgical practice but will require thoughtful implementation prioritizing patient benefit and clinical value.

Humans↗

Rainfall variability in East Africa: implications for natural resources management and livelihoods.

This note examines the effects of climate variability on natural-resources management in East Africa. The bimodal rainfall regime in much of East Africa brings rainy seasons from March to May and October to December with greater interannual variability from October to December. We discuss the impacts of rainfall extremes in 1961 and 1997 and explore three examples of natural-resources management in the context of rainfall variability: inland fisheries in East and southern Africa; fluctuations in the level of Lake Victoria; and lake-shore communities around Lake Kyoga in Uganda. The discussion reflects the complexity of linkages between climate, environment and society in the region and highlights implications for natural-resources management. These range from benefits due to improved seasonal rainfall forecasting to reduce the damage of extremes, to improved understanding of existing climate-society interactions to provide insights into the region's vulnerability and adaptive capacity in relation to future climate change.

Africa, Eastern↗

A chi-square goodness-of-fit analysis of dependent resource selection data.

The chi2 goodness-of-fit test is commonly used for testing if animals use resources in proportion to availability. This method assumes independence of resource selection among animals. In reality, this assumption is violated if animals display antisocial or gregarious behavior. Data from a study of sharp-tailed grouse in eastern Washington suggested some dependency among observations. Realizing that this dependency can have a great influence on inference for resource selection data, we develop a technique to incorporate information on dependent observations through a simple adjustment of the usual goodness-of-fit statistic. We also demonstrate how confidence intervals on proportional use may be modified for dependent observations. Simulation is used to compare our method to other methods.

Animals↗