Healthcare utilization patterns of individuals with depression after national policy to increase the mental health workforce in primary care: a data linkage study.

BACKGROUND: The deployment of the mental health nurse, an additional healthcare provider for individuals in need of mental healthcare in Dutch general practices, was expected to substitute treatments from general practitioners and providers in basic and specialized mental healthcare (psychologists, psychotherapists, psychiatrists, etc.). The goal of this study was to investigate the extent to which the degree of mental health nurse deployment in general practices is associated with healthcare utilization patterns of individuals with depression. METHODS: We combined national health insurers' claims data with electronic health records from general practices. Healthcare utilization patterns of individuals with depression between 2014 and 2019 (N = 31,873) were analysed. The changes in the proportion of individuals treated after depression onset were assessed in association with the degree of mental health nurse deployment in general practices. RESULTS: The proportion of individuals with depression treated by the GP, in basic and specialized mental healthcare was lower in individuals in practices with high mental health nurse deployment. While the association between mental health nurse deployment and consultation in basic mental healthcare was smaller for individuals who depleted their deductibles, the association was still significant. Treatment volume of general practitioners was also lower in practices with higher levels of mental health nurse deployment. CONCLUSION: Individuals receiving care at a general practice with a higher degree of mental health nurse deployment have lower odds of being treated by mental healthcare providers in other healthcare settings. More research is needed to evaluate to what extent substitution of care from specialized mental healthcare towards general practices might be associated with waiting times for specialized mental healthcare.

The tripartite insurance model (TIM): a financial incentive to prevent outbreaks of infections due to multidrug-resistant microorganisms in hospitals.

Healthcare-associated infections caused by multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) constitute a major challenge worldwide, but care providers are often not sufficiently incentivized to implement recommended infection prevention measures to prevent the spread of such infections. We propose a new approach which creates incentives for hospitals, external laboratories and insurers to collaborate on preventing MDRO outbreaks by testing more and implementing infection prevention measures. This tripartite insurance model (TIM) redistributes the costs of preventing and combating MDRO outbreaks in a way that all parties benefit from reducing the number of outbreaks.

The Impacts of Deep Surgical Site Infections on Readmissions, Length of Stay, and Costs: A Matched Case-Control Study Conducted in an Academic Hospital in the Netherlands.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the impacts of deep surgical site infections (dSSIs) regarding hospital readmissions, prolonged length of stay (LoS), and estimated costs. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We designed and applied a matched case-control observational study using the electronic health records at the University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands. We compared patients with dSSI and non-SSI, matched on the basis of having similar procedures. A prevailing topology of surgeries categorized as clean, clean-contaminated, contaminated, and dirty was applied. RESULTS: Out of a total of 12,285 patients, 393 dSSI were identified as cases, and 2864 patients without SSIs were selected as controls. A total of 343 dSSI patients (87%) and 2307 (81%) controls required hospital readmissions. The median LoS was 7 days (P25-P75: 2.5-14.5) for dSSI patients and 5 days (P25-P75: 1-9) for controls (p-value: <0.001). The estimated mean cost per hospital admission was €9,016 (SE±343) for dSSI patients and €5,409 (SE±120) for controls (p<0.001). Independent variables associated with dSSI were patient's age ≥65 years (OR: 1.334; 95% CI: 1.036-1.720), the use of prophylactic antibiotics (OR: 0.424; 95% CI: 0.344-0.537), and neoplasms (OR: 2.050; 95% CI: 1.473-2.854). CONCLUSION: dSSI is associated with increased costs, prolonged LoS, and increased readmission rates. Elevated risks were seen for elderly patients and those with neoplasms. Additionally, a protective effect of prophylactic antibiotics was found.

Cost-Effectiveness Of Culture-Based Versus Empirical Antibiotic Treatment For Hospitalized Adults With Community-Acquired Pneumonia In Indonesia: A Real-World Patient-Database Study.

OBJECTIVE: This study analyzes the cost-effectiveness of culture-based treatment (CBT) versus empirical treatment (ET) as a guide to antibiotic selection and use in hospitalized patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). PATIENTS AND METHODS: A model was developed from the individual patient data of adults with CAP hospitalized at an academic hospital in Indonesia between 2014 and 2017 (ICD-10 J.18x). The directed antibiotic was assessed based on microbiological culture results in terms of the impact on hospital costs and life expectancy (LE). We conducted subgroup analyses for implementing CBT and ET in adults under 60 years, elderly patients (≥ 60 years), moderate-severe CAP (PSI class III-V) cases, and ICU patients. The model was designed with a lifetime horizon and adjusted patients' ages to the average LE of the Indonesian population with a 3% discount each for cost and LE. We applied a sensitivity analyses on 1,000 simulation cohorts to examine the economic acceptability of CBT in practice. Willingness to pay (WTP) was defined as 1 or 3 times the Indonesian GDP per capita (US$ 3,570). RESULTS: CBT would effectively increase the patients' LE and be cost-saving (dominant) as well. The ET group's hospitalization cost had the greatest influence on economic outcomes. Subgroup analyses showed that CBT's dominance remained for Indonesian patients aged under 60 years or older, patients with moderate-severe CAP, and patients in the ICU. Acceptability rates of CBT over ET were 74.9% for 1xWTP and 82.8% for 3xWTP in the base case. CONCLUSION: Both sputum and blood cultures provide advantages for cost-saving and LE gains for hospitalized patients with CAP. CBT is cost-effective in patients all ages, PSI class III or above patients, and ICU patients.

Rapid Analysis of Diagnostic and Antimicrobial Patterns in R (RadaR): Interactive Open-Source Software App for Infection Management and Antimicrobial Stewardship.

BACKGROUND: Analyzing process and outcome measures for all patients diagnosed with an infection in a hospital, including those suspected of having an infection, requires not only processing of large datasets but also accounting for numerous patient parameters and guidelines. Substantial technical expertise is required to conduct such rapid, reproducible, and adaptable analyses; however, such analyses can yield valuable insights for infection management and antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) teams. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to present the design, development, and testing of RadaR (Rapid analysis of diagnostic and antimicrobial patterns in R), a software app for infection management, and to ascertain whether RadaR can facilitate user-friendly, intuitive, and interactive analyses of large datasets in the absence of prior in-depth software or programming knowledge. METHODS: RadaR was built in the open-source programming language R, using Shiny, an additional package to implement Web-app frameworks in R. It was developed in the context of a 1339-bed academic tertiary referral hospital to handle data of more than 180,000 admissions. RESULTS: RadaR enabled visualization of analytical graphs and statistical summaries in a rapid and interactive manner. It allowed users to filter patient groups by 17 different criteria and investigate antimicrobial use, microbiological diagnostic use and results including antimicrobial resistance, and outcome in length of stay. Furthermore, with RadaR, results can be stratified and grouped to compare defined patient groups on the basis of individual patient features. CONCLUSIONS: AMS teams can use RadaR to identify areas within their institutions that might benefit from increased support and targeted interventions. It can be used for the assessment of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures and for visualizing and communicating analyses. RadaR demonstrated the feasibility of developing software tools for use in infection management and for AMS teams in an open-source approach, thus making it free to use and adaptable to different settings.

Admissions for ambulatory care sensitive conditions: a national observational study in the general and COPD population.

BACKGROUND: Hospital admissions for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) may be prevented by effective ambulatory management and treatment. ACSC admissions is used as indicator for primary care quality and accessibility. However, debate continues to which extent these admissions are truly preventable. The aim of this study was to provide more objective insight into the preventability of ACSC admissions. METHODS: Observational study using 2012-15 health insurer claim data of 13 182 602 Dutch insured inhabitants. Logistic multilevel regression analyses were conducted to investigate factors (ambulatory care and characteristics of inhabitants) possibly associated with ACSC admissions. Prior ambulatory care use was examined for patients with an ACSC contributing to the highest number of ACSC admissions: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). RESULTS: In 2014, 89.8 hospital admissions for ACSCs per 10 000 insured inhabitants were claimed. Percentage of inhabitants with ACSC admissions varied between general practices from 0.58-0.84%. ASCS admissions were hardly associated with ambulatory care. One month prior to admission, 97% of admitted COPD patients had at least one ambulatory care contact. CONCLUSIONS: Variation in ACSC admissions between general practitioners was observed, indicating that certain hospital admissions may be prevented. However, we found no indication that ACSC admissions were preventable, as no link was found with the provision of ambulatory care and ACSC admissions. This may indicate that this indicator is country and health care system specific. Before including ACSC admission as quality indicator of primary care in the Netherlands, more insight into the causes of variation is required.

Cost analysis of outbreaks with Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Dutch long-term care facilities (LTCF).

OBJECTIVES: Highly resistant microorganisms (HRMOs) are of high concern worldwide and are becoming increasingly less susceptible for antibiotics. To study the cost effectiveness of infection prevention measures in long-term care, it is essential to first fully understand the impact of HRMOs. The objective of this study is to identify the costs associated with outbreaks caused by Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Dutch long-term care facilities (LTCF). METHODS: After an outbreak of MRSA, Dutch LTCF can submit a reimbursement form to the Dutch Healthcare Authority ("Nederlandse Zorgautoriteit"; NZa) to get a part of the total costs reimbursed. In this study, we requested NZa forms for financial impact analysis. Details regarding the costs of the outbreak have been extracted from these forms and additionally specific LTCF have been visited in person to validate the data. RESULTS: 34 complete reimbursement forms from the period between 2011 and 2016 were received from the NZa and have been included. The median cost per patient per day was estimated at €83.80, varying between €16.89 and €1,820.09. We validated five reimbursement forms by visiting the facility and recalculating the costs. We found a non-significant positive difference of €26.07 compared with the original data (p = 0.068). CONCLUSIONS: This study is to our knowledge the first to give a national overview of total costs associated with an MRSA outbreak in LTCF in the Netherlands. Overall, costs per patient per day seem lower than in a hospital setting, although total costs are much higher due to the long term of care.

Prevention of Surgical Site Infections: A Systematic Review of Cost Analyses in the Use of Prophylactic Antibiotics.

Introduction: The preoperative phase is an important period in which to prevent surgical site infections (SSIs). Prophylactic antibiotic use helps to reduce SSI rates, leading to reductions in hospitalization time and cost. In clinical practice, besides effectiveness and safety, the selection of prophylactic antibiotic agents should also consider the evidence with regard to costs and microbiological results. This review assessed the current research related to the use of antibiotics for SSI prophylaxis from an economic perspective and the underlying epidemiology of microbiological findings. Methods: A literature search was carried out through PubMed and Embase databases from 1 January 2006 to 31 August 2017. The relevant studies which reported the use of prophylactic antibiotics, SSI rates, and costs were included for analysis. The causing pathogens for SSIs were categorized by sites of the surgery. The quality of reporting on each included study was assessed with the "Consensus on Health Economic Criteria" (CHEC). Results: We identified 20 eligible full-text studies that met our inclusion criteria, which were subsequently assessed, studies had in a reporting quality scored on the CHEC list averaging 13.03 (8-18.5). Of the included studies, 14 were trial-based studies, and the others were model-based studies. The SSI rates ranged from 0 to 71.1% with costs amounting to US$480-22,130. Twenty-four bacteria were identified as causative agents of SSIs. Gram negatives were the dominant causes of SSIs especially in general surgery, neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery, and obstetric cesarean sections. Conclusions: Varying results were reported in the studies reviewed. Yet, information from both trial-based and model-based costing studies could be considered in the clinical implementation of proper and efficient use of prophylactic antibiotics to prevent SSIs and antimicrobial resistance.

Challenges for a Sustainable Financial Foundation for Antimicrobial Stewardship.

Antimicrobial resistance is a worldwide threat and a problem with large clinical and economic impact. Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs are a solution to curb resistance development. A problem of resistance is a separation of actions and consequences, financial and clinical. Such a separation makes it difficult to create support among stakeholders leading to a lack of sense of responsibility. To counteract the resistance development it is important to perform diagnostics and know how to interpret the results. One should see diagnostics, therapy and resistance as one single process. Within this process all involved stakeholders need to work together on a more institutional level. We suggest therefore a solution: combining diagnostics and therapy into one single financial product. Such a product should act as an incentive to perform correct diagnostics. It also makes it easier to cover the costs of an antimicrobial stewardship program, which is often overlooked. Finally, such a product involves all stakeholders in the process and does not lay the costs at one stakeholder and the benefits somewhere else, solving the misbalance that is present nowadays.

Positive impact of infection prevention on the management of nosocomial outbreaks at an academic hospital.

AIM: Infection prevention (IP) measures are vital to prevent (nosocomial) outbreaks. Financial evaluations of these are scarce. An incremental cost analysis for an academic IP unit was performed. MATERIAL & METHODS: On a yearly basis, we evaluated: IP measures; costs thereof; numbers of patients at risk for causing nosocomial outbreaks; predicted outbreak patients; and actual outbreak patients. RESULTS: IP costs rose on average yearly with €150,000; however, more IP actions were undertaken. Numbers of patients colonized with high-risk microorganisms increased. The trend of actual outbreak patients remained stable. Predicted prevented outbreak patients saved costs, leading to a positive return on investment of 1.94. CONCLUSION: This study shows that investments in IP can prevent outbreak cases, thereby saving enough money to earn back these investments.

Measuring the impact of antimicrobial stewardship programs.

Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs) are being implemented worldwide to optimize antimicrobial therapy, and thereby improve patient safety and quality of care. Additionally, this should counteract resistance development. It is, however, vital that correct and timely diagnostics are performed in parallel, and that an institution runs a well-organized infection prevention program. Currently, there is no clear consensus on which interventions an ASP should comprise. Indeed this depends on the institution, the region, and the patient population that is served. Different interventions will lead to different effects. Therefore, adequate evaluations, both clinically and financially, are crucial. Here, we provide a general overview of, and perspective on different intervention strategies and methods to evaluate these ASP programs, covering before mentioned topics. This should lead to a more consistent approach in evaluating these programs, making it easier to compare different interventions and studies with each other and ultimately improve infection and patient management.

Cross-border comparison of antibiotic prescriptions among children and adolescents between the north of the Netherlands and the north-west of Germany.

BACKGROUND: Antibiotic resistance is a worldwide problem and inappropriate prescriptions are a cause. Especially among children, prescriptions tend to be high. It is unclear how they differ in bordering regions. This study therefore examined the antibiotic prescription prevalence among children in primary care between northern Netherlands and north-west of Germany. METHODS: Two datasets were used: The Dutch (IADB) comprises representative data of pharmacists in North Netherland and the German (BARMER GEK) includes nationwide health insurance data. Both were filtered using postal codes to define two comparable bordering regions with patients under 18 years for 2010. RESULTS: The proportion of primary care patients receiving at least one antibiotic was lower in northern Netherlands (29.8 %; 95 % confidence interval [95 % CI]: 29.3-30.3), compared to north-west Germany (38.9 %; 95 % CI: 38.2-39.6). Within the respective countries, there were variations ranging from 27.0 to 44.1 % between different areas. Most profound was the difference in second-generation cephalosporins: for German children 25 % of the total prescriptions, while for Dutch children it was less than 0.1 %. CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first to compare outpatient antibiotic prescriptions among children in primary care practices in bordering regions of two countries. Large differences were seen within and between the countries, with overall higher prescription prevalence in Germany. Considering increasing cross-border healthcare, these comparisons are highly valuable and help act upon antibiotic resistance in the first line of care in an international approach.

Cost-Analysis of Seven Nosocomial Outbreaks in an Academic Hospital.

OBJECTIVES: Nosocomial outbreaks, especially with (multi-)resistant microorganisms, are a major problem for health care institutions. They can cause morbidity and mortality for patients and controlling these costs substantial amounts of funds and resources. However, how much is unclear. This study sets out to provide a comparable overview of the costs of multiple outbreaks in a single academic hospital in the Netherlands. METHODS: Based on interviews with the involved staff, multiple databases and stored records from the Infection Prevention Division all actions undertaken, extra staff employment, use of resources, bed-occupancy rates, and other miscellaneous cost drivers during different outbreaks were scored and quantified into Euros. This led to total costs per outbreak and an estimated average cost per positive patient per outbreak day. RESULTS: Seven outbreaks that occurred between 2012 and 2014 in the hospital were evaluated. Total costs for the hospital ranged between €10,778 and €356,754. Costs per positive patient per outbreak day, ranged between €10 and €1,369 (95% CI: €49-€1,042), with a mean of €546 and a median of €519. Majority of the costs (50%) were made because of closed beds. CONCLUSIONS: This analysis is the first to give a comparable overview of various outbreaks, caused by different microorganisms, in the same hospital and all analyzed with the same method. It shows a large variation within the average costs due to different factors (e.g. closure of wards, type of ward). All outbreaks however cost considerable amounts of efforts and money (up to €356,754), including missed revenue and control measures.

An integrated stewardship model: antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic (AID).

Considering the threat of antimicrobial resistance and the difficulties it entails in treating infections, it is necessary to cross borders and approach infection management in an integrated, multidisciplinary manner. We propose the antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic stewardship model comprising three intertwined programs: antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic stewardship, involving all stakeholders. The focus is a so-called 'theragnostics' approach. This leads to a personalized infection management plan, improving patient care and minimizing resistance development. Furthermore, it is important that healthcare regions nationally and internationally work together, ensuring that the patient (and microorganism) transfers will not cause problems in a neighboring institution. This antimicrobial, infection prevention and diagnostic stewardship model can serve as a blue print to implement innovative, integrative infection management.

Automatic day-2 intervention by a multidisciplinary antimicrobial stewardship-team leads to multiple positive effects.

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial resistance rates are increasing. This is, among others, caused by incorrect or inappropriate use of antimicrobials. To target this, a multidisciplinary antimicrobial stewardship-team (A-Team) was implemented at the University Medical Center Groningen on a urology ward. Goal of this study is to evaluate the clinical effects of the case-audits done by this team, looking at length of stay (LOS) and antimicrobial use. METHODS: Automatic e-mail alerts were sent after 48 h of consecutive antimicrobial use triggering the case-audits, consisting of an A-Team member visiting the ward, discussing the patient's therapy with the bed-side physician and together deciding on further treatment based on available diagnostics and guidelines. Clinical effects of the audits were evaluated through an Interrupted Time Series analysis and a retrospective historic cohort. RESULTS: A significant systemic reduction of antimicrobial consumption for all patients on the ward, both with and without case-audits was observed. Furthermore, LOS for patients with case-audits who were admitted primarily due to infections decreased to 6.20 days (95% CI: 5.59-6.81) compared to the historic cohort (7.57 days; 95% CI: 6.92-8.21; p = 0.012). Antimicrobial consumption decreased for these patients from 8.17 DDD/patient (95% CI: 7.10-9.24) to 5.93 DDD/patient (95% CI: 5.02-6.83; p = 0.008). For patients with severe underlying diseases (e.g., cancer) these outcome measures remained unchanged. CONCLUSION: The evaluation showed a considerable positive impact. Antibiotic use of the whole ward was reduced, transcending the intervened patients. Furthermore, LOS and mean antimicrobial consumption for a subgroup was reduced, thereby improving patient care and potentially lowering resistance rates.

Financial evaluations of antibiotic stewardship programs-a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: There is an increasing awareness to counteract problems due to incorrect antimicrobial use. Interventions that are implemented are often part of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASPs). Studies publishing results from these interventions are increasing, including reports on the economical effects of ASPs. This review will look at the economical sections of these studies and the methods that were used. METHODS: A systematic review was performed of articles found in the PubMed and EMBASE databases published from 2000 until November 2014. Included studies found were scored for various aspects and the quality of the papers was assessed following an appropriate check list (CHEC criteria list). RESULTS: 1233 studies were found, of which 149 were read completely. Ninety-nine were included in the final review. Of these studies, 57 only mentioned the costs associated with the antimicrobial medication. Others also included operational costs (n = 23), costs for hospital stay (n = 18), and/or other costs (n = 19). Nine studies were further assessed for their quality. These studies scored between 2 and 14 out of a potential total score of 19. CONCLUSIONS: This review gives an extensive overview of the current financial evaluation of ASPs and the quality of these economical studies. We show that there is still major potential to improve financial evaluations of ASPs. Studies do not use similar nor consistent methods or outcome measures, making it impossible draw sound conclusions and compare different studies. Finally, we make some recommendations for the future.

Cost-minimization model of a multidisciplinary antibiotic stewardship team based on a successful implementation on a urology ward of an academic hospital.

BACKGROUND: In order to stimulate appropriate antimicrobial use and thereby lower the chances of resistance development, an Antibiotic Stewardship Team (A-Team) has been implemented at the University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands. Focus of the A-Team was a pro-active day 2 case-audit, which was financially evaluated here to calculate the return on investment from a hospital perspective. METHODS: Effects were evaluated by comparing audited patients with a historic cohort with the same diagnosis-related groups. Based upon this evaluation a cost-minimization model was created that can be used to predict the financial effects of a day 2 case-audit. Sensitivity analyses were performed to deal with uncertainties. Finally, the model was used to financially evaluate the A-Team. RESULTS: One whole year including 114 patients was evaluated. Implementation costs were calculated to be €17,732, which represent total costs spent to implement this A-Team. For this specific patient group admitted to a urology ward and consulted on day 2 by the A-Team, the model estimated total savings of €60,306 after one year for this single department, leading to a return on investment of 5.9. CONCLUSIONS: The implemented multi-disciplinary A-Team performing a day 2 case-audit in the hospital had a positive return on investment caused by a reduced length of stay due to a more appropriate antibiotic therapy. Based on the extensive data analysis, a model of this intervention could be constructed. This model could be used by other institutions, using their own data to estimate the effects of a day 2 case-audit in their hospital.