Providing Patient Mobilization With a Mobility Technician Improves Staff Efficiency and Constrains Cost in Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty

BackgroundMobility technicians (MTs) demonstrate value in constraining the cost of total joint replacement procedures. MTs are certified medical assistants with specialized ambulation/gait training who work under the direction of the nursing staff to meet patient mobilization demands in hospital wards. This study analyzed their impact on primary total hip arthroplasty (THA).MethodsData were retrospectively reviewed from both the time before and the time after MTs were introduced to the hospital for demographic information (ie, age, gender, race, and payer) and clinical measures (ie, length of stay and discharge disposition). The control group was treated and mobilized according to standard physical therapy and nursing staff protocols. Study group subjects had access to the MTs at the direction of their registered nurse. Included subjects underwent a primary THA procedure for arthritic conditions or hip fractures, or for conversion from a previous hip surgery. Excluded were subjects who underwent procedures for revision, bilateral, or hip resurfacing procedures.ResultsThe study and control groups included 542 and 1297 subjects, respectively. They shared a median length of stay of 2 days (P = .121). More study group subjects were discharged home than were their control group counterparts (91.51%-87.43%, P = .012). Cost analysis revealed an annual savings of $119,794.50 in total first post-acute care (ie, the period spent at a patient’s initial discharge disposition level) costs to the institution. Therefore, MTs would need to successfully treat only 5 patients annually to recoup a savings equivalent to their salary.ConclusionMTs support the recovery of THA patients in the hospital, in turn optimizing their discharge disposition. Institutions may experience a financial benefit in a bundled payment system, in which avoiding costly rehab facilities may result in savings over the episode.