Cost differences between academic and nonacademic hospitals: a case study of surgical procedures

Decreased public funding, a competitive healthcare market, and higher patient care costs have been blamed for the present financial challenges that confront academic health centers. The authors examined the costs associated with graduate medical education, particularly, indirect medical education expenses in the operating room. The results indicate that it is more costly for teaching hospitals to provide surgical care to patients in the operating room. The academic health center's indirect graduate medical expenses only covered a portion of the increased costs. If the missions of academic health centers are perceived as a public good, policy makers must design a system that more appropriately compensates academic health centers for the additional costs associated with surgical procedures in graduate medical education.     

Relationship of health services to medical expenses for the national health insurance and certification rate for long-term care insurance services in municipalities

In many municipalities, implementation rates of health services mandated by the Health and Medical Service Law for the Elderly have not reached the national goal that was set at the start. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of health services using medical expenses for the National Health Insurance (NHI) and certification rate for long-term care insurance services in 99 municipalities in Gifu Prefecture as indices. Both indices were standardized by the age composition of the population. Among the health services, visit rates for health examinations or implementation rates for health education or health counseling correlated negatively with medical expenses for each insured person. The visit rate for gastric cancer screening correlated negatively with medical expenses for malignant neoplasms of the stomach. Implementation rates of health education or health counseling, or ratios of public health nurses correlated positively with certification rates for long-term support need and care need grade 1, and negatively with those for long-term care need grades 2, 3, and 4. The author concluded that medical expenses are reduced by the implementation of available health services, that early detection and prevention of aggravation of disease is essential for those who need long-term care services, and that health services must be reinforced with primary prevention.     

Estimating the mission-related costs of teaching hospitals

Academic health centers and other teaching hospitals face higher patient care costs than nonteaching community hospitals face, because of their missions of graduate medical education (GME), biomedical research, and the maintenance of standby capacity for medically complex patients. We estimate that total mission-related costs were dollar 27 billion in 2002 for all teaching hospitals, with GME (including indirect and direct GME) and standby capacity accounting for roughly 60 and 35 percent of these costs, respectively. To assure their continued ability to perform important social missions in a competitive environment, it may be necessary to reassess the way in which these activities are financed.     

Putting a price tag on training new doctors

The nation's teaching hospitals depend heavily on $5.2 billion in annual federal payments for graduate medical education, but few of them know what portion pays for patient care and what portion supports teaching activities. Because hospitals and medical schools will continue to confront funding cutbacks under health reform, they must learn how to quantify the revenue and expenses associated with each activity to receive adequate compensation.     

Market-focused management: a model for US academic health centers

This paper describes managed care, competition and high health care costs and reductions in funding as the major market forces that affect US academic health centers. As academic health centers continue to preserve their missions of providing patient care, educating and training health professionals and conducting research, they are negatively impacted by these market changes, thus, resulting in increased expenses and lowered revenue. A key component to surviving in difficult times is market-focused management. This paper develops a model to show the path of senior level management teams in their decision making. Through the performance of essential managerial roles, senior level managers are responsible for strategies that result in the long-term viability and growth of academic health centers.     

上海市某区社区卫生服务中心公用经费支出状况分析

目的分析上海市某区社区卫生服务中心公用经费使用状况,为政府制定社区卫生服务中心公用经费补偿方案提供决策依据。方法通过上海市某区卫生健康委员会收集2016-2018年该区47所社区卫生服务中心的收支状况和公用经费支出的相关数据,并采用描述性统计方法进行分析。结果 2018年该区社区卫生服务中心公用经费实际值(589.79万元)与预算值(590.11万元)之比为1.00;占公用经费比例较大的物业管理费和信息网络等维(护)费增长较快(分别为13.92%和45.34%),委托业务费也增长明显(38.01%);A区、B区、C区和D区内的平均公用经费和平均纯公用经费的变异性系数都达到0.22以上。结论社区卫生服务中心公用经费预算不足,区域差异明显,相关政府部门应以控制物业管理费和维修(护)费为重点,加强社区卫生服务中心公用经费的保障与监管。     

样本地区农村公共卫生项目成本构成分析

目的分析上海市、江苏省和青海省3个样本县农村公共卫生不同职能和项目房屋折旧、设备折旧、公务业务费、低值易耗品、材料费和人员经费等各种成本的构成。方法通过对3个县93家县、乡、村三级卫生机构的成本消耗调查,借鉴经济学上成本核算的思路和方法。结果样本地区的农村公共卫生项目成本消耗以人员经费和材料经费为主,占总成本的比例均在70.00%以上;3个样本县项目成本消耗以县级为主,占总成本比例均在60.00%以上;不同样本地区乡、村两级成本构成差异较为明显,上海和江苏的样本县乡级机构的成本比例比村级高出12.00%以上,而青海样本县则比例相当,分别为19.67%和19.64%。讨论为保障农村公共卫生项目的职能得到切实落实,对人员经费和材料经费的重视不容忽视;同时,由于各样本地区人口、经济等因素存在差异,农村县、乡、村三级公共卫生网工作重点和任务分工有所不同,进行农村公共卫生服务项目投入标准测算时应引起足够的重视。     

Accounting for teaching hospitals' higher costs and what to do about them

Academic health centers (AHCs) have higher costs per case and also lower margins than either other teaching hospitals or community hospitals. The differences in margins stem mostly from differences in the intensity with which similar patients are treated, as well as hospitals' ability to generate revenue to cover the costs of that greater intensity, rather than graduate medical education per se. How much patient care capacity should be supported in AHCs and who should be treated with the greater intensity they offer are open questions. If there is to be a public trust fund to subsidize AHCs, it should be financed from general revenues.     

Assessing costs and potential returns of evidence-based programs for seniors

The authors describe the customary tools used by health services researchers to conduct economic evaluations of health interventions. Recognizing the inherent challenges of these tools for utilization in contemporary public health practice, we recommend a practical cost-benefit analysis (PCBA) to allow public health practitioners to assess the economic merits of their existing public health programs. The PCBA estimates what health effects and corresponding medical cost avoidance would be required to support the costs associated with implementing a community-based prevention program. We apply the PCBA to evaluate a statewide evidence-based falls prevention program for seniors in Texas. We estimate a positive return on realized costs due to avoided direct and indirect medical expenses if the program averts 7 falls among 140 participants within the first year. While acknowledging the demonstrated health-related benefits of public health interventions, we provide a practical ex-post economic evaluation methodology to assess return on investment as a more simplistic yet effective alternative for public health practitioners versus contemporary analyses of health services researchers.     

What are the economic consequences for households of illness and of paying for health care in low- and middle-income country contexts?

This paper presents the findings of a critical review of studies carried out in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) focusing on the economic consequences for households of illness and health care use. These include household level impacts of direct costs (medical treatment and related financial costs), indirect costs (productive time losses resulting from illness) and subsequent household responses. It highlights that health care financing strategies that place considerable emphasis on out-of-pocket payments can impoverish households. There is growing evidence of households being pushed into poverty or forced into deeper poverty when faced with substantial medical expenses, particularly when combined with a loss of household income due to ill-health. Health sector reforms in LMICs since the late 1980s have particularly focused on promoting user fees for public sector health services and increasing the role of the private for-profit sector in health care provision. This has increasingly placed the burden of paying for health care on individuals experiencing poor health. This trend seems to continue even though some countries and international organisations are considering a shift away from their previous pro-user fee agenda. Research into alternative health care financing strategies and related mechanisms for coping with the direct and indirect costs of illness is urgently required to inform the development of appropriate social policies to improve access to essential health services and break the vicious cycle between illness and poverty.     

Family practice residencies in community health centers--an approach to cost and access concerns.

An inadequate number of trained primary care clinicians limits access to care at Community Health Centers. If family practice residents working in these centers can provide care to patients at a cost that is comparable to the center''s hiring its own physicians, then expansion of Family Practice Residency Programs into community centers can address both cost and access concerns. A cost-benefit analysis of the Family Practice Residency Program at the Fresno, CA, community center was performed; the community center is affiliated with the University of California at San Francisco. Costs included (a) residents'' salaries, (b) supervision of the family practice residents, (c) family practice program costs for educational activities apart from supervision at the community center, and (d) administrative costs attributable to family practice residents in the community center. Benefits were based on the number of patients that residents saw in the community center. Using this approach, a cost of $7,700 per resident per year was calculated. This cost is modest compared with the cost of training residents in inpatient settings. The added costs attributable to training residents in community health centers can be shared with agencies that are concerned with medical education, providing physicians to underserved communities, and increasing the supply of primary care physicians. Redirecting graduate medical education funding from hospitals to selected ambulatory care training centers of excellence would facilitate placing residents in community centers. This change would have the dual advantage of addressing the current imbalance between training in ambulatory care and hospital sites and increasing the capacity of community health centers to meet the health care needs of underserved populations.     

The association between health risk status and health care costs among the membership of an Australian health plan

Health promotion in Australia has developed into an accepted strategy for solving public health problems and promoting the health of its citizens. However, there are few evidence-based research studies in Australia that measure health risk status or track health changes over time with defined cost outcome measures. Those individuals with more high-risk lifestyle behaviors have been associated with higher costs compared with those with low-risk behaviors. Although intuitively it was believed that the health promotion programs had a positive impact on health behaviors and consequently on health care costs, the relationship between health risk status and health care costs had yet to be tested in the Australian population. Consequently, a verification study was initiated by the Australian Health Management Group (AHMG) to confirm that those relationships between health risks and medical costs that had been published would also hold in the Australian population using Australian private health care costs as the outcome measure. Eight health risks were defined using a Health Risk Appraisal (HRA) to determine the health risk status of participants. Consistent with previous studies, low-risk participants were associated with the lowest health care costs (377 Australian dollars) compared with medium- (484 Australian dollars) or high-risk (661 Australian dollars) participants and non-participants (438 Australian dollars). If the health care costs of those at low risk were considered as the baseline costs, excess health care costs associated with excess health risks in this population were calculated at 13.5% of total expenditures. Health risk reduction and low-risk maintenance can provide important strategies for improving/maintaining the health and well-being of the membership and for potential savings in health care costs.     

Maternal and Child Health Graduate and Continuing Education Needs: A National Assessment

Objectives: The purpose of this report is to describe the methodology and results of a recent national assessment of long-term graduate and short-term continuing education needs of public health and health care professionals who serve or are administratively responsible for the U.S. maternal and child health population and also to offer recommendations for future training initiatives. Methods: The target of this needs assessment was all directors of state MCH, CSHCN and Medicaid agencies, as well as a 20% random sample of local public health departments. A 7-page needs assessment form was used to assess the importance of and need for supporting graduate and continuing education training in specific skill and content areas. The needs assessment also addressed barriers to pursuing graduate and continuing education. Respondents (n = 274) were asked to indicate the capacity of their agency for providing continuing education as well as their preferred modalities for training. Results: Regardless of agency type, i.e., state MCH, CSHCN, Medicaid or local health department, having employees with a graduate education in MCH was perceived to be of benefit by more than 70% of the respondents. Leadership, systems development, management, administration, analytic, policy and advocacy skills, as well as genetics, dentistry, nutrition and nursing, were all identified as critical unmet needs areas for professionals with graduate training. Education costs, loss of income, and time constraints were the identified barriers to graduate education. More than 90% of respondents from each agency viewed continuing education as a benefit for their staff, although the respondents indicated that their agencies have limited capacity to either provide such training or to assess their staff's need for continuing education. Program managers and staff were perceived in greatest need of continuing education and core public health skills, leadership, and administration were among the most frequently listed topics to receive continuing education training support dollars. Time away from work, lack of staff to cover functions, and cost were the top barriers to receiving continuing education. While attending on-site, in-state, small conferences was the continuing education modality of first preference, there was also considerable interest expressed in web-based training. Conclusions: Six recommendations were developed on the basis of the findings and address the following areas: the ongoing need for continued support of both graduate and continuing education efforts; the development of a national MCH training policy analysis center; the incorporation of routine assessments of training needs by states as part of their annual needs assessments; the promotion of alternative modalities for training, i.e., web-based; and, the sponsorship of academic/practice partnerships for cross-training.     

扩招时期研究生心理健康水平研究

目的调查扩招时期不同类型研究生心理健康水平情况。方法随机抽取南方一师范类高校473名研究生,采用SCL-90症状自评量表进行问卷调查,运用SPSS 10.0 for Windows对调查数据进行t检验,分析不同类型研究生心理健康水平的差异情况。结果研究生群体的心理健康水平显著低于全国常模(P<0.05),自费研究生和曾工作过的研究生心理健康水平分别低于公费研究生和未曾工作过的研究生,有显著性差异(P<0.01)。结论扩招时期研究生群体的心理健康状况较差,不同类型研究生的心理健康水平不同,建议研究生培养单位针对不同类型研究生的特点进行心理健康教育。     

The academic health center and the healthy community.

US medical care reflects the priorities and influence of academic health centers. This paper describes the leadership role assumed by one academic health center, the State University at Buffalo's School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and its eight affiliated hospitals, to serve its region by promoting shared governance in educating graduate physicians and in influencing the cost and quality of patient care. Cooperation among hospitals, health insurance payers, the business community, state government, and physicians helped establish priorities to meet community needs and reduce duplication of resources and services; to train more primary care physicians; to introduce shared governance into rural health care delivery; to develop a regional management information system; and to implement health policy. This approach, spearheaded by an academic health center without walls, may serve as a model for other academic health centers as they adapt to health care reform.     

间接医疗费用对造成家庭重大医疗支出的影响

目的研究间接医疗费用对增加家庭医疗费用负担以及引起家庭重大医疗支出的作用及其影响因素。方法利用2003年全国卫生服务调查资料,定量测算门诊及住院间接医疗费用及其造成的家庭重大医疗支出发生率,并利用回归模型分析其影响因素。结果间接医疗费用在门诊和住院中都非常普遍,间接医疗费用可以直接导致1％-2％的家庭重大医疗支出发生,特别是在农村地区作用更为明显。影响间接医疗费用的主要因素包括收入状况、保险类型,及家庭与卫生机构的距离。结论间接医疗费用不但可以增加家庭的医疗支出,而且可以直接造成家庭重大医疗支出的发生,特别是对于农村地区和弱势人群的作用更加突出。为了更好的解决“看病难”问题,要对间接医疗费用引起足够的重视,并通过提高卫生服务利用的物理可及性和经济可及性、扩大医疗保障覆盖范围和覆盖力度来加以解决,同时还要特别关注弱势群体和农村地区。     

医疗卫生费用与居民健康水平的相关研究

目的：了解全国各地区人均医疗卫生费用的分布差异,分析医疗卫生费用充足区域和不足区域居民的健康水平与医疗卫生费用的关系,为我国医疗卫生费用的合理投入提供政策依据。方法整理统计年鉴的相关数据,采用相关和线性回归的分析方法,对人均医疗卫生费用和居民健康水平进行分析。结果总体上,人均医疗卫生费用与期望寿命和死亡率的回归系数分别为0．353和－0．457,但在医疗卫生费用充足区域,医疗卫生费用对死亡率和期望寿命的回归系数无统计学意义（P＞0．05）;而在卫生费用不足区域,医疗卫生费用与死亡率和期望寿命的回归系数为0．320和－0．589。结论医疗卫生费用的持续增长并不能带来居民健康水平的持续显著性的提高,当人均医疗卫生费用达到一定程度,增加医疗卫生费用对居民健康状况没有显著影响。     

Calculating the costs of gun injuries. A new methodology

A new method for assessing the costs of gun injuries to a health system examines data on paid amounts, comprehensive medical expenses, and expenses over time. The authors extracted claims using injury diagnosis codes from billing forms and medical charts. The study demonstrates that a claims database can be used to accurately measure health care costs associated with gun injuries. The study is the first to include gun-related injuries treated in ambulatory care settings and to track actual payments over time.     

Whither primary care in the academic health science center?

Five forces that shape the form and function of the future academic health center are a mandate to decrease health care costs, a surplus of physicians, intense competition for the provision of tertiary medical care, a suboptimal diagnosis-related group (DRG) case mix, and decreasing funding for manpower training and research. All five forces cause the academic health center to be much more in need of strong primary medical care services. This article describes the current relationship between primary care and the academic medical center, new contributions that primary care can make to the academic medical center, and the benefits that would accrue to both the academic medical center and primary care should a closer working relationship develop. These benefits include increased outpatient volume and revenue, a more balanced inpatient case mix, better primary medical care education, an enhanced community reputation, and greater influence by primary care on academic medical center policies. Published and personal case study experiences that show some of the potential problems with a closer working relationship between primary care and the academic medical center are described.     

Higher fees paid to US physicians drive higher spending for physician services compared to other countries

Higher health care prices in the United States are a key reason that the nation's health spending is so much higher than that of other countries. Our study compared physicians' fees paid by public and private payers for primary care office visits and hip replacements in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States. We also compared physicians' incomes net of practice expenses, differences in financing the cost of medical education, and the relative contribution of payments per physician and of physician supply in the countries' national spending on physician services. Public and private payers paid somewhat higher fees to US primary care physicians for office visits (27 percent more for public, 70 percent more for private) and much higher fees to orthopedic physicians for hip replacements (70 percent more for public, 120 percent more for private) than public and private payers paid these physicians' counterparts in other countries. US primary care and orthopedic physicians also earned higher incomes ($186,582 and $442,450, respectively) than their foreign counterparts. We conclude that the higher fees, rather than factors such as higher practice costs, volume of services, or tuition expenses, were the main drivers of higher US spending, particularly in orthopedics.