Cost-effectiveness of COVID rapid diagnostic tests for patients with severe/critical illness in low- and middle-income countries: A modeling study.

BACKGROUND: Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for coronavirus disease (COVID) are used in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to inform treatment decisions. However, to date, it is unclear when this use is cost-effective. Existing analyses are limited to a narrow set of countries and uses. The aim of this study is to assess the cost-effectiveness of COVID RDTs to inform the treatment of patients with severe illness in LMICs, considering real world practice. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We assessed the cost-effectiveness of COVID testing across LMICs using a decision tree model, differentiating results by country income level, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) prevalence, and testing scenario (none, RDTs, polymerase chain reaction tests-PCRs and combinations). LMIC experts defined realistic care pathways and treatment options. Using a healthcare provider perspective and net monetary benefit approach, we assessed both intended (COVID symptom alleviation) and unintended (treatment side effects) health and economic impacts for each testing scenario. We included the side effects of corticosteroids, which are often the only available treatment for COVID. Because side effects depend both on the treatment and the patient's underlying illness (COVID or COVID-like illnesses, such as influenza), we considered the prevalence of COVID-like illnesses in our analyses. We found that SARS-CoV-2 testing of patients with severe COVID-like illness can be cost-effective in all LMICs, though only in some circumstances. High influenza prevalence among suspected COVID cases improves cost-effectiveness, since incorrectly provided corticosteroids may worsen influenza outcomes. In low- and some lower-middle-income countries, only patients with a high index of suspicion for COVID should be tested with RDTs, while other patients should be presumed to not have COVID. In some lower-middle-income and upper-middle-income countries, suspected severe COVID cases should almost always be tested. Further, in these settings, negative test results in patients with a high initial index of suspicion should be confirmed through PCR and, during influenza outbreaks, positive results in patients with a low initial index of suspicion should also be confirmed with a PCR. The use of interleukin-6 receptor blockers, when supported by testing, may also be cost-effective in higher-income LMICs. The cost at which they would be cost-effective in low-income countries ($162 to $406 per treatment course) is below current prices. The primary limitation of our analysis is substantial uncertainty around some of the parameters in our model due to limited data, most notably on current COVID mortality with standard of care, and insufficient evidence on the impact of corticosteroids on patients with severe influenza. CONCLUSIONS: COVID testing can be cost-effective to inform treatment of LMIC patients with severe COVID-like disease. The optimal algorithm is driven by country income level and health budgets, the level of suspicion that the patient may have COVID, and influenza prevalence. Further research to better characterize the unintended effects of corticosteroids, particularly on influenza cases, could improve decision making around the treatment of those with COVID-like symptoms in LMICs.

A Randomized Noninferiority Trial to Compare Enteral to Parenteral Phosphate Replacement on Biochemistry, Waste, and Environmental Impact and Healthcare Cost in Critically Ill Patients With Mild to Moderate Hypophosphatemia.

OBJECTIVES: Hypophosphatemia occurs frequently. Enteral, rather than IV, phosphate replacement may reduce fluid replacement, cost, and waste. DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, parallel group, noninferiority clinical trial. SETTING: Single center, 42-bed state trauma, medical and surgical ICUs, from April 20, 2022, to July 1, 2022. PATIENTS: Patients with serum phosphate concentration between 0.3 and 0.75 mmol/L. INTERVENTIONS: We randomized patients to either enteral or IV phosphate replacement using electronic medical record-embedded program. MEASUREMENT AND MAIN RESULTS: Our primary outcome was serum phosphate at 24 hours with a noninferiority margin of 0.2 mmol/L. Secondary outcomes included cost savings and environmental waste reduction and additional IV fluid administered. The modified intention-to-treat cohort comprised 131 patients. Baseline phosphate concentrations were similar between the two groups. At 24 hours, mean ( sd ) serum phosphate concentration were enteral 0.89 mmol/L (0.24 mmol/L) and IV 0.82 mmol/L (0.28 mmol/L). This difference was noninferior at the margin of 0.2 mmol/L (difference, 0.07 mmol/L; 95% CI, -0.02 to 0.17 mmol/L). When assigned IV replacement, patients received 408 mL (372 mL) of solvent IV fluid. Compared with IV replacement, the mean cost per patient was ten-fold less with enteral replacement ($3.7 [$4.0] vs. IV: $37.7 [$31.4]; difference = $34.0 [95% CI, $26.3-$41.7]) and weight of waste was less (7.7 g [8.3 g] vs. 217 g [169 g]; difference = 209 g [95% CI, 168-250 g]). C O2 emissions were 60-fold less for comparable phosphate replacement (enteral: 2 g producing 14.2 g and 20 mmol of potassium dihydrogen phosphate producing 843 g of C O2 equivalents). CONCLUSIONS: Enteral phosphate replacement in ICU is noninferior to IV replacement at a margin of 0.2 mmol/L but leads to a substantial reduction in cost and waste.

Price for waiting: the adverse outcomes of boarding critically ill elderly medical patients in the emergency department.

PURPOSE: Boarding, the period in which a patient spends in the emergency department (ED) before admission, may be hazardous to critically ill patients, particularly the elderly. This study investigated the associations of boarding with hospital course, prognosis, and medical expenditure in older patients. METHODS: From January 2019 to December 2021, the medical records of older patients (age ≥ 65) visiting the ED of a tertiary referral hospital who were admitted to the medical intensive care unit (ICU) were retrospectively reviewed. Eligible patients were categorized into two groups according to boarding time with a cutoff set at 6 h. Primary outcomes were in-hospital mortality, ICU/hospital length of stay, and total/average hospitalization cost. Subgroup analyses considered age and disease type. RESULTS: Among 1318 ICU admissions from the ED, 36% were subjected to boarding for over 6 h. Prolonged boarding had a longer ICU (8.9 ± 8.8 vs. 11.2 ± 12.2 days, P < .001) and hospital (17.8 ± 20.1 vs. 22.8 ± 23.0 days, P < .001) stay, higher treatment cost (10.4 ± 13.9 vs. 13.2 ± 16.5 thousands of USD, P = .001), and hospital mortality (19% vs. 25% P = .020). Multivariate regression analysis showed a longer ICU stay in patients aged 65-79 (8.3 ± 8.4 vs. 11.8 ± 14.2 days, P < .001) and cardiology patients (6.9 ± 8.4 vs. 8.8 ± 9.7 days, P = .001). Besides, the treatment cost was also higher for both groups (10.4 ± 14.6 vs. 13.7 ± 17.7 thousands of USD, P = .004 and 8.4 ± 14.0 vs. 11.7 ± 16.6 thousands of USD, P < .001, respectively). CONCLUSION: Extended ED boarding for critically ill medical patients over 65 years old was associated with negative outcomes, including longer ICU/hospital stays, higher treatment costs, and hospital mortality.

The safety and efficacy of high-speed train transport for critical children: a retrospective propensity score matching cohort study.

It is widely acknowledged that efficiency of pediatric critical care transport plays a vital role in treatment of critically-ill children. In developing countries, most critically-ill children were transported by ambulance, and a few by air, such as a helicopter or fixed airplane. High-speed train (HST) transport may be a potential choice for critically-ill children to a tertiary medical center for further therapy. This is a single-center, retrospective cohort study from June 01, 2016 to June 30, 2019. All the patients transported to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of PLA general hospital were divided into two groups, HST group and ambulance group. The propensity score matching method was performed for the comparison between the two groups. Finally, a 2:1 patient matching was performed using the nearest-neighbor matching method without replacement. The primary outcome was hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes included duration of transport, transport cost, hospital stay, and hospitalization cost. A total of 509 critically-ill children were transported and admitted. Of them, 40 patients were transported by HST, and 469 by ambulance. The hospital mortality showed no difference between the two groups (p > 0.05). The transport distance in the HST group was longer than that in the ambulance group (1894.5 ± 907.09 vs. 902.66 ± 735.74, p < 0.001). However, compared to the HST group, the duration of transport time by ambulance was significantly longer (p < 0.001). No difference in vital signs, blood gas analysis, and critical illness score between groups at admission was noted (p > 0.05). There was no death during the transport. There was no difference between groups regarding the transport cost, hospital stays, and hospitalization cost (p > 0.05). High-quality tertiary medical centers are usually located in megacities. HST transport network for critically-ill children could be established to cover most regions of the country. Without increasing financial burden, HST medical transport can be a potentially promising option to improve the outcomes of critically-ill children in developing countries with developed HST network.Clinical Trial Registration: This study was registered at http://www.chictr.org.cn/index.aspx (chiCTR.gov; Identifier: ChiCTR2000032306).

Evaluation of the incidence, characteristics, and outcomes of pediatric chronic critical illness.

Our aim was to determine characteristics of children with chronic critical illness (CCI) admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of a tertiary care children's hospital in Turkey. The current study was a multicenter retrospective cohort study that was done from 2014 to 2017. It involved three university hospitals PICUs in which multiple criteria were set to identify pediatric CCIs. Pediatric patients staying in the ICU for at least 14 days and having at least one additional criterion, including prolonged mechanical ventilation, tracheostomy, sepsis, severe wound (burn) or trauma, encephalopathy, traumatic brain injury, status epilepticus, being postoperative, and neuromuscular disease, was accepted as CCI. In order to identify the newborn as a chronic critical patient, a stay in the intensive care unit for at least 30 days in addition to prematurity was required. Eight hundred eighty seven (11.14%) of the patients who were admitted to the PICU met the definition of CCI and 775 of them (87.3%) were discharged to their home. Of CCI patients, 289 (32.6%) were premature and 678 (76.4%) had prolonged mechanical ventilation. The total cost values for 2017 were statistically higher than the other years. As the length of ICU stay increased, the costs also increased. Interestingly, high incidence rates were observed for PCCI in our hospitals and these patients occupied 38.01% of the intensive care bed capacity. In conclusion, we observed that prematurity and prolonged mechanical ventilation increase the length of ICU stay, which also increased the costs. More work is needed to better understand PCCI.

Economical provision of blood components for critical patient transport across a large geographic area.

BACKGROUND: Rapid air transport of critically injured patients to sites of appropriate care can save lives. The provision of blood products on critical care transport flights may save additional lives by starting resuscitation earlier. METHODS: Our regional trauma center transfusion service provided 2 units of O-negative red blood cells and 2 units of A low-titer anti-B liquid plasma in an internally monitored and sealed eutectic box weighing 10.4 pounds to eight air bases once weekly. Flight crews were instructed to transfuse plasma units first. Unused blood was returned to the transfusion service. Total blood use and wastage were recorded. RESULTS: Over a 6-year period, ≈ 7400 blood components were provided, and >1000 were used by the air transport service in patient care. Plasma units were 57% of all units given. Unused units were returned to the providing transfusion service and used in hospital patient care with <3% loss. Estimated cost of providing blood per mission was $63 and per patient transfused was $1940. CONCLUSIONS: With appropriate attention to detail, it is possible to provide life-saving blood components to aeromedical transport services across a large geographic area with efficient blood component usage, minimal blood wastage, and low cost.

Tracheotomy Timing and Outcomes in the Critically Ill: Complexity and Opportunities for Progress.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To characterize the effects of tracheotomy timing at our institution on intensive care unit (ICU) length of stay (LOS) and overall hospital LOS. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed at a tertiary care medical center for patients undergoing tracheotomy over 2.5 years from January 1, 2016 through June 30, 2018. Demographics, survival, duration of endotracheal intubation, timing of tracheotomy, and ICU and overall hospital LOS were assessed. Tracheotomy was considered early (ET) if it was performed by day 7 of mechanical ventilation and late (LT) thereafter. Readmission, mortality, and costs were also tabulated for each aggregate group. Nonparametric statistics were used to compare results. RESULTS: Of the 536 patients included in the analysis, 160 received tracheotomy early and 376 late. Differences between age and sex were not statistically significant. Duration of total ICU stay was shortened by 65% (12.84 ± 17.69 days vs. 38.49 ± 26.61 days; P < .0001), and length of overall hospital course was reduced by 54% (22.71 ± 26.65 days vs. 50.37 ± 34.20 days; P < .0001) in the early tracheotomy group. Observed/expected (O/E) values standardized results to case mix index and revealed LOS of 1.5 for ET and 2.5 for LT, and mortality of 0.76 for ET and 1.25 for LT, and comparable readmissions of both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Early tracheotomy in ICU patients is associated with earlier ICU discharge, decreased length of overall hospital stay, and lower mortality when controlling for case mix index. Opportunities exist to optimize patient outcomes and O/E performance. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4 Laryngoscope, 131:282-287, 2021.

Epidemiology of Chronic Critical Illness in Japan: A Nationwide Inpatient Database Study.

OBJECTIVES: The epidemiology of chronic critical illness is not well known. We aimed to estimate the prevalence, mortality, and costs associated with chronic critical illness in Japan. DESIGN: A nationwide inpatient administrative database study in Japan from April 2011 to March 2018. SETTING: Six hundred seventy-nine acute-care hospitals with ICU beds in Japan. PATIENTS: Adult patients who met our definition for chronic critical illness: one of six eligible clinical conditions (prolonged acute mechanical ventilation, tracheotomy, stroke, traumatic brain injury, sepsis, and severe wound) plus at least 8 consecutive days in an ICU. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Among 2,395,016 ICU admissions during the study period, 216,434 (9.0%) met the definition for chronic critical illness. The most common eligible condition was prolonged acute mechanical ventilation (73.9%), followed by sepsis (50.6%), tracheostomy (23.8%), and stroke (22.8%). Overall inhospital mortality was 28.6%. The overall age-specific population prevalence was 42.0 per 100,000. The age-specific population prevalence steadily increased with age, reaching 109.6 per 100,000 in persons aged greater than 85 years. With extrapolation to national estimates in Japan, there were 47,729 chronic critical illness cases in 2011 and the number remained similar at 46,494 cases in 2017. Hospitalization costs increased gradually, rising from U.S.$2.3 billion in 2011 to U.S.$2.7 billion in 2017. Inhospital mortality decreased from 30.6% to 28.2%, whereas the proportion of patients with total/severe dependence increased from 29.6% to 33.2% and the proportion of patients with decreased consciousness at discharge increased from 18.7% to 19.6%. CONCLUSIONS: Using a nationwide inpatient database in Japan, we found substantial clinical and economic burdens of chronic critical illness in Japan. Chronic critical illness was particularly common in elderly people. Although inhospital mortality of chronic critical illness patients continues to decrease, costs and patients with dependence for activities of daily living or decreased consciousness at discharge are increasing.

Omega-3 fatty acid-containing parenteral nutrition in ICU patients: systematic review with meta-analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis.

BACKGROUND: Omega-3 (ω-3) fatty acid (FA)-containing parenteral nutrition (PN) is associated with significant improvements in patient outcomes compared with standard PN regimens without ω-3 FA lipid emulsions. Here, we evaluate the impact of ω-3 FA-containing PN versus standard PN on clinical outcomes and costs in adult intensive care unit (ICU) patients using a meta-analysis and subsequent cost-effectiveness analysis from the perspective of a hospital operating in five European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK) and the US. METHODS: We present a pharmacoeconomic simulation based on a systematic literature review with meta-analysis. Clinical outcomes and costs comparing ω-3 FA-containing PN with standard PN were evaluated in adult ICU patients eligible to receive PN covering at least 70% of their total energy requirements and in the subgroup of critically ill ICU patients (mean ICU stay > 48 h). The meta-analysis with the co-primary outcomes of infection rate and mortality rate was based on randomized controlled trial data retrieved via a systematic literature review; resulting efficacy data were subsequently employed in country-specific cost-effectiveness analyses. RESULTS: In adult ICU patients, ω-3 FA-containing PN versus standard PN was associated with significant reductions in the relative risk (RR) of infection (RR 0.62; 95% CI 0.45, 0.86; p = 0.004), hospital length of stay (HLOS) (- 3.05 days; 95% CI - 5.03, - 1.07; p = 0.003) and ICU length of stay (LOS) (- 1.89 days; 95% CI - 3.33, - 0.45; p = 0.01). In critically ill ICU patients, ω-3 FA-containing PN was associated with similar reductions in infection rates (RR 0.65; 95% CI 0.46, 0.94; p = 0.02), HLOS (- 3.98 days; 95% CI - 6.90, - 1.06; p = 0.008) and ICU LOS (- 2.14 days; 95% CI - 3.89, - 0.40; p = 0.02). Overall hospital episode costs were reduced in all six countries using ω-3 FA-containing PN compared to standard PN, ranging from €-3156 ± 1404 in Spain to €-9586 ± 4157 in the US. CONCLUSION: These analyses demonstrate that ω-3 FA-containing PN is associated with statistically and clinically significant improvement in patient outcomes. Its use is also predicted to yield cost savings compared to standard PN, rendering ω-3 FA-containing PN an attractive cost-saving alternative across different health care systems. STUDY REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42019129311.

Association between regional economic status and renal recovery of dialysis-requiring acute kidney injury among critically ill patients.

The association between regional economic status and the probability of renal recovery among patients with dialysis-requiring AKI (AKI-D) is unknown. The nationwide prospective multicenter study enrolled critically ill adult patients with AKI-D in four sampled months (October 2014, along with January, April, and July 2015) in Taiwan. The regional economic status was defined by annual disposable income per capita (ADIPC) of the cities the hospitals located. Among the 1,322 enrolled patients (67.1 ± 15.5 years, 36.2% female), 833 patients (63.1%) died, and 306 (23.1%) experienced renal recovery within 90 days following discharge. We categorized all patients into high (n = 992) and low economic status groups (n = 330) by the best cut-point of ADIPC determined by the generalized additive model plot. By using the Fine and Gray competing risk regression model with mortality as a competing risk factor, we found that the independent association between regional economic status and renal recovery persisted from model 1 (no adjustment), model 2 (adjustment to basic variables), to model 3 (adjustment to basic and clinical variables; subdistribution hazard ratio, 1.422; 95% confidence interval, 1.022-1.977; p = 0.037). In conclusion, high regional economic status was an independent factor for renal recovery among critically ill patients with AKI-D.

What contributes to medical debt? Evidence from patients in rural China.

BACKGROUND: Rural households in developing countries usually have severe medical debt due to high out-of-pocket (OOP) payments, which contributes to bankruptcy. China implemented the critical illness insurance (CII) in 2012 to decrease patients' medical expenditure. This paper aimed to explore the medical debt of rural Chinese patients and its influencing factors. METHODS: A questionnaire survey of health expenditures and medical debt was conducted in two counties of Central and Western China in 2017. Patients who received CII were used as the sample on the basis of multi-stage stratified cluster sampling. Descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis of variance were used in all data. A two-part model was used to evaluate the occurrence and extent of medical debt. RESULTS: A total of 826 rural patients with CII were surveyed. The percentages of patients incurring medical debt exceeded 50% and the median debt load was 20,000 Chinese yuan (CNY, 650 CNY = US$100). Financial assistance from kin (P < 0.001) decreased the likelihood of medical debt. High inpatient expenses (IEs, P < 0.01), CII reimbursement ratio (P < 0.001), and non-direct medical costs (P < 0.001) resulted in increased medical debt load. CONCLUSIONS: Medical debt is still one of the biggest problems in rural China. High IEs, CII reimbursement ratio, municipal or high-level hospitals were the risk determinants of medical debt load. Financial assistance from kin and household income were the protective factors. Increasing service capability of hospitals in counties could leave more patiemts in county-level and township hospitals. Improving CII with increased reimbursement rate may also be issues of concern.

Cost Analysis of Adjunctive Hydrocortisone Therapy for Septic Shock: U.S. Payer Perspective.

OBJECTIVES: To conduct a cost analysis of adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy for severe septic shock from the perspective of a third-party payer in the United States. DESIGN: Estimates of outcomes were aggregate data from the Adjunctive Corticosteroid Treatment in Critically Ill Patients with Septic Shock and Activated Protein C and Corticosteroids for Human Septic Shock trials. In these trials, the outcomes of interests were ICU length of stay, vasopressor-free days, ventilation-free days, and the proportion of patients receiving blood transfusion. Each outcome was monetized into a set of mutually exclusive components and was aggregated to estimate the cost-per-patient based on each trial. Cost inputs for each outcome were obtained from literature and adjusted based on the medical care consumer price index. To estimate the budget impact using adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy, per-patient avoided cost was multiplied by expected septic shock annual incidence. Deterministic one-way sensitivity analysis evaluated the robustness of the findings, and Monte Carlo simulation estimated 95% CI of the findings. SETTING: A total of 103 medical-surgical ICU (69 for Adjunctive Corticosteroid Treatment in Critically Ill Patients with Septic Shock and 34 for Activated Protein C and Corticosteroids for Human Septic Shock). PATIENTS: Adults greater than or equal to 18 years old with septic shock. INTERVENTIONS: Adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy (hydrocortisone at a dose of 200 mg/d for 7 d for Adjunctive Corticosteroid Treatment in Critically Ill Patients with Septic Shock and hydrocortisone at a 50 mg IV bolus every 6 hr and fludrocortisone as a 50 µg tablet once daily). MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Per Adjunctive Corticosteroid Treatment in Critically Ill Patients with Septic Shock, adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy showed a 90-day monetized benefit of $8,111 (95% CI, $3,914-$12,307) per patient, driven by improvements in ICU-free days, vasopressor-free days, ventilation-free days, and blood transfusion proportion. The total estimated annual impact of adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy, in 2019 dollars, was $750 million. Per Activated Protein C and Corticosteroids for Human Septic Shock, adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy showed a 90-day monetized benefit of $25,539 per patient (95% CI, $22,853-$28,224), driven by improvements in ICU free-days, vasopressor-free days, and ventilation-free days. The total estimated annual impact of adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy, in 2019 dollars, was $2.3 billion. The deterministic one-way sensitivity analysis showed the cost of ICU stays to be the most influential factor in both analyses. The sensitivity analysis using the reported median showed a greater monetized benefit of $10,658 (Adjunctive Corticosteroid Treatment in Critically Ill Patients with Septic Shock) and $30,911 (Activated Protein C and Corticosteroids for Human Septic Shock) per patient. CONCLUSIONS: Using adjunctive hydrocortisone therapy yields a significant monetized benefit based on inputs from the Adjunctive Corticosteroid Treatment in Critically Ill Patients with Septic Shock and Activated Protein C and Corticosteroids for Human Septic Shock trials.

Economic Implications of Chinese Diagnosis-Related Group-Based Payment Systems for Critically Ill Patients in ICUs.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the economic implications of payments based on Chinese diagnosis-related groups for critically ill patients in ICUs in terms of total hospital expenditure, out-of-pocket payments, and length of stay. DESIGN: A pre-post comparison of patient cohorts admitted to ICUs 1 year before and 1 year after Chinese diagnosis-related group reform was undertaken. Demographic characteristics, clinical data, and medical expenditures were collated from a health insurance database. SETTING: Twenty-two public hospitals in Sanming, Southern China. PATIENTS: All patients admitted to ICUs from January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2018. INTERVENTION: The implementation of Chinese diagnosis-related group-based payments on January 1, 2018. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Economic variables (total expenditures, out-of-pocket payments, and length of stay) were calculated for each patient from the day of hospital admission to the day of hospital discharge. Adjusted mean out-of-pocket payment estimates were 29.46% (p < 0.001) lower following reform. Adjusted mean out-of-pocket payments fell by 41.32% for patients in neonatal ICU, whereas there were no significant decreases in out-of-pocket payments for patients in PICU and adult ICU. Furthermore, adjusted mean out-of-pocket payments decreased by 55.74% in secondary hospitals, but there was no significant change in tertiary hospitals after Chinese diagnosis-related group reform. No significant changes were found in total expenditures and length of stay. CONCLUSIONS: Chinese diagnosis-related group policy provided an opportunity for critically ill patients in ICUs to achieve at least short-term financial benefits in reducing out-of-pocket payments, without affecting the total expenditures and length of stay. Chinese diagnosis-related group-based payment significantly relieved financial burdens for patients with lower illness severities, such as patients in neonatal ICU. The results of this study can offer significant insights for policymakers in reducing the financial burden on critically ill patients, both in China and in other countries with similar systems.

Integrating a safety smart list into the electronic health record decreases intensive care unit length of stay and cost.

PURPOSE: To measure how an integrated smartlist developed for critically ill patients would change intensive care units (ICUs) length of stay (LOS), mortality, and charges. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Propensity-score analysis of adult patients admitted to one of 14 surgical and medical ICUs between June 2017 and May 2018. The smart list aimed to certain preventative measures for all critical patients (e.g., removing unneeded catheters, starting thromboembolic prophylaxis, etc.) and was integrated into the electronic health record workflows at the hospitals under study. RESULTS: During the study period, 11,979 patients were treated in the 14 participating ICUs by 518 unique providers. Patients who had the smart list used during ≥60% of their ICU stay (N = 432 patients, 3.6%) were significantly more likely to have a shorter ICU LOS (HR = 1.20, 95% CI:1.0 to 1.4, p = 0.015) with an average decrease of -$1218 (95% CI: -$1830 to -$607, P < 0.001) in the amount charged per day. The intervention cohort had fewer average ventilator days (3.05 vent days, SD = 2.55) compared to propensity score matched controls (3.99, SD = 4.68, p = 0.015), but no changes in mortality (16.7% vs 16.0%, p = 0.78). CONCLUSIONS: An integrated smart list shortened LOS and lowered charges in a diverse cohort of critically ill patients.

The Benefits of Parenteral Nutrition (PN) Versus Enteral Nutrition (EN) Among Adult Critically Ill Patients: What is the Evidence? A Literature Review.

Malnutrition is frequently seen among patients in the intensive care unit. Evidence shows that optimal nutritional support can lead to better clinical outcomes. Recent clinical trials debate over the efficacy of enteral nutrition (EN) over parenteral nutrition (PN). Multiple trials have studied the impact of EN versus PN in terms of health-care cost and clinical outcomes (including functional status, cost, infectious complications, mortality risk, length of hospital and intensive care unit stay, and mechanical ventilation duration). The aim of this review is to address the question: In critically ill adult patients requiring nutrition support, does EN compared to PN favorably impact clinical outcomes and health-care costs?

Frailty and associated outcomes and resource utilization following in-hospital cardiac arrest.

BACKGROUND: In-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) is common and associated with high mortality. Frailty is increasingly recognized as a predictor of worse prognosis among critically ill patients, but its association with outcomes and resource utilization following IHCA is unknown. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis (2013-2016) of a prospectively collected registry from two hospitals of consecutive hospitalized adult patients with IHCA occurring on the hospital wards. We defined frailty using the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) score ≥5. CFS scores were based on validated medical review criteria. The primary outcome is hospital mortality. Secondary outcomes include return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), discharge to long-term care, and hospital costs. We used multivariable logistic regression to adjust for known confounders. RESULTS: We included 477 patients, and 124 (26.0%) had frailty. Frailty was associated with increased odds of hospital death (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 2.91 [95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.37-3.48) and discharge to long-term care (aOR 1.94 [95% CI: 1.57-2.32]). Compared with patients without frailty, patients with frailty had decreased odds of ROSC following IHCA (aOR 0.63 [95% CI: 0.41-0.93]). No difference in mean total costs was demonstrated between patients with and without frailty ($50,799 vs. $45,849). Frail patients did have higher cost-per-survivor ($947,546 vs. $161,550). CONCLUSIONS: Frail individuals who experience an IHCA are more likely to die in hospital or be discharged to long-term care, and less likely to achieve ROSC in comparison with individuals who are not frail. The hospital costs per-survivor of IHCA are increased when frailty is present.

Impact of Critical Illness Insurance on the Burden of High-Cost Rural Residents in Central China: An Interrupted Time Series Study.

Critical illness insurance (CII) in China was introduced to protect high-cost groups from health expenditure shocks for the purpose of mutual aid. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of CII on the burden of high-cost groups in central rural China. Data were extracted from the basic medical insurance (BMI) hospitalization database of Xiantao City from January 2010 to December 2016. A total of 77,757 hospitalization records were included in our analysis. The out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses and reimbursement ratio (RR) were the two main outcome variables. Interrupted time series analysis with a segmented regression approach was adopted. Level and slope changes were reported to reflect short- and long-term effects, respectively. Results indicated that the number of high-cost inpatient visits, the average monthly hospitalization expenses, and OOP expenses per high-cost inpatient visit were increased after CII introduction. By contrast, the RR from BMI and non-reimbursable expenses ratio were decreased. The OOP expenses and RR covered by CII were higher than those uncovered. We estimated a significant level decrease in OOP expenses (p < 0.01) and rise in RR (p < 0.01), whereas the slope decreases of OOP expenses (p = 0.19) and rise of RR (p = 0.11) after the CII were non-significant. We concluded that the short-term effect of the CII policy is significant and contributes to decreasing OOP expenses and raising RR for high-cost groups, whereas the long-term effect is non-significant. These findings can be explained by increasing hospitalization expenses, many non-reimbursable expenses, low coverage for high-cost groups, and the unsustainability of the financing methods.