Cost analysis of face-to-face visits, virtual visits, and a digital care pathway in the treatment of tonsillitis patients.
Am J Otolaryngol
; 44(4): 103868, 2023.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36996515
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
The aim of this study was to compare the costs of two different telemedicine-assisted tonsillitis care pathways with traditional face-to-face visits at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery (ORL-HNS) at Helsinki University Hospital.METHODS:
We characterized and analyzed the patient flows and their individual episodes of all tonsillitis patients at the Department of ORL-HNS between September 2020 and August 2022. Records were collected by doctors at the clinic. We investigated costs and allocated resources in four categories invoice from the Department of ORL-HNS to the public payer, expenses to the Department, patient fees, and doctor's resource.RESULTS:
At least a third of the tonsillitis patients were eligible for telemedicine. The digital care pathway was 12.6 % less expensive for the public payer compared to the previous virtual visit model. For the Department, the expense of the digital care pathway was 58.8 % less per patient than the virtual visit model. Patient fees decreased 79.5 %. The digital care pathway reduced the doctor's resource from 30.28 min to 19.78 min, which accounts for a 34.7 % reduction. Patients finished the digital care pathway in a median of 62 min (SD = 60) compared to the 2-4 h which they would spend on an outpatient clinic visit.CONCLUSION:
Our study demonstrates that tonsillitis patients are eligible for preoperative telemedicine. With at least a third of the tonsillitis patients being eligible for telemedicine, major cost savings can be achieved with efficient e-health-assisted solutions.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Tonsilite
/
Procedimentos Clínicos
Tipo de estudo:
Guideline
/
Health_economic_evaluation
Limite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2023
Tipo de documento:
Article