Background
This article investigates the hospital costs related to the management of COVID-19 positive patients, requiring a hospitalization (from the positivity confirmation to discharge, including rehabilitation activities).
Methods
A time-driven activity-based costing analysis, grounding on administrative and accounting flows provided by the management control, was implemented to define costs related to the hospital management of COVID-19 positive patients, according to real-word data, derived from six public Italian Hospitals, in 2020.
Results
Results reported that the higher the complexity of care, the higher the hospitalization cost per day (low-complexity = €475.86; medium-complexity = €700.20; high-complexity = €1,401.65). Focusing on the entire clinical pathway, the overall resources absorption, with the inclusion of rehabilitation costs, ranged from 6,198.02€ to 32,141.20€, dependent from the patient’s clinical condition.
Conclusions
Data could represent the baseline cost for COVID-19 hospital management, thus being useful for the further development of proper reimbursement tariffs devoted to hospitalized infected patients.
Objectives. The study aims to define the economic resources needed to manage chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP), assuming the hospital perspective, based on different patient characteristics, within a 24-month time horizon. Methods. Real-world data were collected in 3 Italian hospitals. A time-driven activity-based costing approach was implemented to map and assess the pathways for CRSwNP. The following drivers were considered: diagnostic services, drugs, consumables, human resources, equipment and overhead costs based on the length of stay. Costs related to management of comorbidities and adverse events were evaluated. Three main groups of patients were identified: ineligible for surgery; having 1 intervention; having more than 1 intervention. The economic absorption of patients who continued corticosteroid treatment was analysed. Results. Patients experiencing 1 intervention had a cost of 3,453.31 € that increased to 4,705.03 € for those who required additional surgery. The cost of intranasal corticosteroids was 649.20 €, whereas the cost of oral corticosteroids was 37.60 € per patient. Conclusions. The results demonstrate the strategic relevance of analytical cost definitions of the clinical pathway for CRSwNP, which can help to support decision makers in the review of internal procedures and in the definition of proper reimbursement tariffs. KEY WORDS: chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis, CRSwNP, surgical pathway, process mapping, time-driven activity-based costing RIASSUNTO Obiettivi. Lo studio mira a definire i costi per la gestione della rinosinusite cronica con poliposi nasale (CRSwNP), assumendo la prospettiva ospedaliera, in base alle caratteristiche dei pazienti, in un orizzonte temporale di 24 mesi.
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