Acute bronchiolitis: The economic impact of non-compliance with national guidelines; [Bronquiolitis aguda: impacto económico del incumplimiento de las directrices nacionales]

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2024

Authors

Poço Miranda, S (Author) Other; Rodrigues, H (Author) Other; Susana Sampaio Oliveira (Author) FEP

Journal

Title: Journal of Healthcare Quality Research

Vol. 9 No. 5

Pages: 299-305

ISSN: 2603-6479

Indexing

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Other information

Authenticus ID: P-010-ZDS

DOI: 10.1016/j.jhqr.2024.06.005

Abstract (EN): Introduction: Acute bronchiolitis is a common reason for admission to the pediatric emergency department. Evidence has shown that most interventions do not change the natural course of the disease. Material and methods: This study aimed to evaluate the economic impact of the non-compliance with the acute bronchiolitis Portuguese national guideline. A retrospective study of pediatric emergency episodes of a Portuguese hospital that had a diagnosis of acute bronchiolitis during 2019, was conducted. Results: The sample included 344 emergency episodes. Non-compliance with the guideline occurred in 71.8% of the episodes, mostly due to unjustified treatment. Following guideline in the studied hospital for one year would have resulted in an estimated overall 76.6% cost reduction, with a reduction in mean direct costs per patient of 14.93 ¤, corresponding to a medium saving of 3.89 ¤ for each patient and a reduction of 11.03 ¤ for the Portuguese National Health Service. Analyzing the unjustified mean direct costs, of these 2.97 ¤ were related to inpatient diagnostic tests and therapeutic and the remaining 11.96 ¤ were related to outpatient therapy. Mean direct costs imputed to the patient for outpatient treatment represented only 3.31 ¤, therefore most of mean direct costs is paid by the National Health Service. Conclusions: Compliance with guideline would allow the reduction of total estimated costs by about 76.6%, representing a waste of resources, without compromising the quality of care provided. Most of the cost associated with non-compliance with the guideline is justified by outpatient therapy, 67% of which was paid by the National Health Service. © 2024 FECA

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific