Chieh-Min Fan1, Chao-Lun Lai2, Ai-Hsien Li3, Kuo-Piao Chung4, Ming-Chin Yang4. 1. Department of Emergency Medicine, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, New Taipei City; ; Institute of Health Policy and Management, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. 2. Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital Hsin-Chu Branch, Hsinchu, Taiwan; 3. Cardiac Function Laboratory, Ottawa Heart Institute, Canada; 4. Institute of Health Policy and Management, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The relationship between quality of care and cost of medical services is a popular topic. In this study, we examined whether a reduced door-to-balloon (D2B) time led to cost savings, benefitted insurance payers, and improved patient outcomes. METHODS: We retrospectively enrolled consecutive patients who presented with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and received primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between Feb. 1, 2007, and Jul. 31, 2009, at a tertiary hospital in Taiwan. The patient data were collected by chart review. We utilized claims data from the hospital financial system as the proxy for insurance payer costs. We only included the claims data, regardless of whether patients were inpatients or outpatients, associated with the first three cardiovascular related ICD-9 codes. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the relationships between the D2B time, in-hospital mortality and one-year cardiovascular readmission. We utilized a multivariable linear regression to test the relationships between the D2B time, hospitalization cost and one-year cardiovascular-related cost. RESULTS: The D2B time did not influence the in-hospital mortality rate, but a D2B time greater than 90 min increased the probability of one-year cardiovascular readmission (p = 0.018). The D2B time did not increase the index hospitalization cost, but patients with a D2B time above 90 min had 14.6% higher one-year cardiovascular- related costs. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that the D2B time in patients with STEMI could impact the one-year cardiovascular readmission and one-year cardiovascular-related health cost. These results suggest that the pursuit of high-quality care not only leads to better outcomes, but also reduces costs. KEY WORDS: Acute myocardial infarction; Cost; Door-to-balloon time; Insurance payer; Quality.
BACKGROUND: The relationship between quality of care and cost of medical services is a popular topic. In this study, we examined whether a reduced door-to-balloon (D2B) time led to cost savings, benefitted insurance payers, and improved patient outcomes. METHODS: We retrospectively enrolled consecutive patients who presented with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and received primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between Feb. 1, 2007, and Jul. 31, 2009, at a tertiary hospital in Taiwan. The patient data were collected by chart review. We utilized claims data from the hospital financial system as the proxy for insurance payer costs. We only included the claims data, regardless of whether patients were inpatients or outpatients, associated with the first three cardiovascular related ICD-9 codes. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the relationships between the D2B time, in-hospital mortality and one-year cardiovascular readmission. We utilized a multivariable linear regression to test the relationships between the D2B time, hospitalization cost and one-year cardiovascular-related cost. RESULTS: The D2B time did not influence the in-hospital mortality rate, but a D2B time greater than 90 min increased the probability of one-year cardiovascular readmission (p = 0.018). The D2B time did not increase the index hospitalization cost, but patients with a D2B time above 90 min had 14.6% higher one-year cardiovascular- related costs. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that the D2B time in patients with STEMI could impact the one-year cardiovascular readmission and one-year cardiovascular-related health cost. These results suggest that the pursuit of high-quality care not only leads to better outcomes, but also reduces costs. KEY WORDS: Acute myocardial infarction; Cost; Door-to-balloon time; Insurance payer; Quality.
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