Caring for critically ill patients outside intensive care units due to full units: a cohort study

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to analyze the clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of critically ill patients who were denied intensive care unit admission due to the unavailability of beds and to estimate the direct costs of treatment. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was performed with critically ill patients treated in a university hospital. All consecutive patients denied intensive care unit beds due to a full unit from February 2012 to February 2013 were included. The data collected included clinical data, calculation of costs, prognostic scores, and outcomes. The patients were followed for data collection until intensive care unit admission or cancellation of the request for the intensive care unit bed. Vital status at hospital discharge was noted, and patients were classified as survivors or non-survivors considering this endpoint. RESULTS: Four hundred and fifty-four patients were analyzed. Patients were predominantly male (54.6%), and the median age was 62 (interquartile range (ITQ): 47 - 73) years. The median APACHE II score was 22.5 (ITQ: 16 - 29). Invasive mechanical ventilation was used in 298 patients (65.6%), and vasoactive drugs were used in 44.9% of patients. The median time of follow-up was 3 days (ITQ: 2 - 6); after this time, 204 patients were admitted to the intensive care unit and 250 had the intensive care unit bed request canceled. The median total cost per patient was US$ 5,945.98. CONCLUSIONS: Patients presented a high severity in terms of disease scores, had multiple organ dysfunction and needed multiple invasive therapeutic interventions. The study patients received intensive care with specialized consultation during their stay in the hospital wards and presented high costs of treatment.

Impacto económico de la resistencia a la meticilina en pacientes con bacteriemia por Staphylococcus aureus en hospitales de Bogotá / Economic burden of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia in critical care patients in hospitals in Bogotá

Introducción. Las infecciones por microorganismos resistentes, especialmente las que involucran el torrente sanguíneo, se asocian a un mayor uso de recursos. Sus estimaciones son variables y dependen de la metodología utilizada. Staphylococcus aureus es el agente de sangre aislado con mayor frecuencia en nuestro medio. No existe información sobre el costo asociado con la atención de bacteriemias por S. aureus resistente a meticilina en nuestro país. Objetivo. Presentar una aproximación del costo de atención de las bacteriemias por S. aureus resistente a la meticilina en nueve hospitales de Bogotá. Materiales y métodos. Se incluyeron 204 pacientes en un estudio de cohortes multicéntrico en una razón de 1:1 según la resistencia. Se aproximaron los costos médicos directos con base en las facturas del período de hospitalización; en cuanto al período de la bacteriemia, los costos detallados se calcularon aplicando las tarifas estandarizadas. Resultados. No se encontraron diferencias significativas en las características clínicas y demográficas de los grupos, salvo en los antecedentes de la bacteriemia. El 53 % de los sujetos falleció durante la hospitalización. La estancia y el valor total facturado por la hospitalización fueron significativamente mayores en el grupo con bacteriemia por S. aureus resistente a la meticilina, así como los costos de la estancia en cuidados intensivos, de los antibióticos, los líquidos parenterales, los exámenes de laboratorio y la terapia respiratoria. El incremento crudo del costo de la atención asociado con la resistencia a meticilina fue de 31 % y, el ajustado, de 70 %. Conclusión. Este estudio constituye un respaldo a los tomadores de decisiones para la búsqueda y la financiación de programas de prevención de infecciones causadas por microorganismos resistentes.

Introduction: Resistant infections, especially those involving the bloodstream, are associated with a greater use of resources. Their estimates are variable and depend on the methodology used. Staphylococcus aureus is the main pathogen isolated in blood in our hospitals. There is no consolidated data about economic implications of methicillin-resistant S. aureus infection. Objective: To describe the cost of care of methicillin-resistant S. aureus bacteremia in a reference population from nine hospitals in Bogotá. Materials y methods: A multicenter cohort study included 204 patients in a 1:1 ratio according to resistance. Direct medical costs were calculated from hospitalization bills, while the bacteremia period was calculated by applying microcosting based on standard fares. Results: We found no significant differences between groups in demographic and clinical characteristics, except for resistance risk factors. Fifty-three percent of patients died during hospitalization. Hospital stay and total invoiced value during hospitalization were significantly higher in the group with methicillin-resistant S. aureus bacteremia. For this group, higher costs in ICU stay, antibiotics use, intravenous fluids, laboratory tests and respiratory support were recorded. A crude increase of 31% and an adjusted increase of 70% in care costs associated with methicillin resistance were registered. Conclusion: Our study supports decision makers in finding and funding infection prevention programs, especially those infections caused by resistant organisms.

Determinación y análisis de costos reales de tratamientos intensivos por paciente y día cama / Analysis of real costs of intensive treatments per patient and bed/day

El objetivo del trabajo es medir los costos reales asociados a las patologías tratadas en las Unidades de Cuidados Intensivos Adulto de los Hospitales Públicos de la Región del Maule, y compararlos con el costo asignado por Fonasa al día cama para el año 2011. Materiales y métodos: Se trata de un estudio prospectivo, aplicando el Sistema de Costos Basado en Actividades (ABC). Se incluyó 469 pacientes, 222 pacientes de la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos del Hospital de Curicó y 247 pacientes la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos del Hospital de Talca entre el 01 de enero y 30 de agosto de 2011, los que de acuerdo a edad y APACHE, representan los niveles de complejidad de pacientes de Unidades de Cuidados Intensivos a nivel nacional. Los pacientes se clasificaron según las patologías: sepsis, cardiovascular, respiratorias, neurológicas, trauma, digestivos, renales y otros. Resultados: Las patologías que presentan mayor mediana de costos por día cama son: sepsis ($362.115), respiratorias ($352.793), trauma ($348.442), renales ($341.928) y cardiovascular ($291.061). La estructura de costos del día cama está conformada principalmente por el costo asociado al recurso humano, cuyo valor máximo asciende a 64 por ciento, seguido del costo asociado a los medicamentos con un valor máximo de 15 por ciento. Los pacientes con sepsis y trauma absorben la mayor proporción de recursos en la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos en estudio; 35 por ciento y 19 por ciento respectivamente y una proporción significativa de dichos costos es utilizada por pacientes que fallecen (34 por ciento y 19 por ciento) respectivamente. Conclusión: Todas las patologías en estudio tienen desviación desfavorable de costos, con respecto al arancel fijado por Fonasa, que sólo asciende a $192.160, para el año 2011.

The aim of the study is measures the real costs associated with the pathologies treated in the of Intensive Care Unid (ICU) Adults of the Public Hospitals of the region of the Maule, and to compare them with the cost assigned by Fonasa to the bed/day for the year 2011. Materials and methods: it is a question of a market study, applying the Activity-based costing (ABC). There was included 469 patients, 222 patients of the ICU of the Curicó’s Hospital and 247 patients the ICU of the Talca’s Hospital between January 01 and August 30, 2011, which in agreement to age and APACHE II, represent the levels of patients’ complexity of ICU to national level. The patients qualified according to the pathologies: sepsis, cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological, trauma, digestive, renal and others. Results: The pathologies that present major median of costs per day bed are: sepsis ($362.115), respiratory ($352.793),trauma ($348.442), renal ($341.928) and cardiovascular ($291.061). The structure of costs of the day bed is shaped principally by the cost associated with the human resource, which maximum value promotes 64 percent, followed by the cost associated with the medicines with a maximum value of 15 percent. The patients with sepsis and trauma absorbed the major proportion of resources in the ICU in our study; 35 percent and 19 percent respectively and a significant proportion of the abovementioned costs is used by patients who die (34 percent and 19 percent)respectively. Conclusion: All the pathologies in study have unfavorable diversion of costs, with regard to the duty fixed by Fonasa, which only promotes to $192.160, for the year2011.

Estudio retrospectivo de costos de tratamientos intensivos por paciente y día cama / Calculation of costs per inpatient day in an intensive care unit

Background: Intensive medicine is especially expensive and requires an efficient management. Aim: To measure the real costs of diseases treated in an intensive care unit and compare them with the costs assigned by the Chilean National Health Fund (FONASA) for 2008. Material and Methods: Retrospective review of 225 patients, representing 82 percent of discharges from an intensive care unit during 2008. Patients were classified according to their medical conditions as having sepsis, trauma, cardiovascular, respiratory or neurological diseases. Costs were calculated using the cost per activity system. Results: Trauma, sepsis and cardiovascular diseases had the greatest cost per inpatient day, corresponding to 294,779; 253,513 and 244,713 Chilean pesos, respectively. Seventy percent of costs correspond to human resources followed by complementary examinations, that represent up to 15 percent of costs. Patients with sepsis and cardiovascular diseases absorbed 28 and 26 percent of intensive care unit resources, respectively. Patients who died with these diseases absorbed 35 and 16 percent of resources, respectively. Conclusions: All diseases studied had significantly higher costs than those assigned by the National Health Fund.

Blood transfusion is associated with increased resource utilisation, morbidity and mortality in cardiac surgery.

The purpose of the present investigation was to examine the impact of blood transfusion on resource utilisation, morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery at a major university hospital. The resources we examined are time to extubation, intensive care unit length of stay (ICULOS) and postoperative length of stay (PLOS). We further examined the impact of number of units of packed red blood cells (PRBCs) transfused during PLOS. This is a retrospective observational study and includes 1746 consecutive male and female patients undergoing primary CABG (on- and off-pump) at our institution. Of these, 1067 patients received blood transfusions, while 677 did not. The data regarding the demography, blood transfusion, resource utilisation, morbidity and mortality were collected from the records of patients undergoing CABG over a period of three years. The mean time to extubation following surgery was 8.0 h for the transfused group and 4.3 h for the nontransfused group ( P <or= 0.001). The mean ICULOS for the transfused group was 1.6 d and 1.2 d for the nontransfused group ( P P <or= 0.001). In all patients and in patients with no preoperative morbidity, partial correlation coefficients were used to examine the effects of transfusion on mortality, time to extubation, ICULOS and PLOS. Linear regression model was used to assess the effect of number of PRBC units transfused on PLOS. We noted that PLOS increased with the number of PRBCs units transfused. Transfusion is significantly correlated with the increased time to extubation, ICULOS, PLOS and mortality. The transfused patients had significantly more postoperative complications than their nontransfused counterparts ( P <or= 0.001). The 30-day hospital mortality was 3.1% for the transfused group with no deaths in the nontransfused group ( P <or= 0.001). We conclude that the CABG patients receiving blood transfusion have significantly longer time for tracheal extubation, ICULOS, PLOS and higher morbidity and 30-day hospital mortality. Blood transfusion was an independent predictor of increased resource utilisation, postoperative morbidity and mortality.

Costos de atención en UCI de un hospital universitario de Bogotá D. C. / Care costs in the ICU of a university hospital in Bogotá DC

Se realizó un estudio descriptivo retrospectivo que evaluó el costo generado por la atención de los pacientes en una UCI de tipo mixto en un hospital universitario. El objetivo fue establecer de manera detallada cada uno de los recursos consumidos tomando la perspectiva del prestador de servicios. Se evaluó la historia clínica de todos los pacientes atendidos durante el período comprendido entre el 1 de octubre de 2003 y el 31 de octubre de 2004, asignándolos de acuerdo con el diagnóstico primario que justificó el ingreso a la unidad en cinco grupos que denominamos de diagnóstico, relacionados de la siguiente manera: 1) cardiovasculares médicos, 2) cardiovasculares quirúrgicos, 3) sepsis de manejo médico, 4) sepsis de manejo quirúrgico y 5) el trauma. Se determinó el consumo de recursos a partir de la factura de venta, pero el valor aplicado corresponde al precio de compra del insumo. Se incluyeron 190 pacientes de los cuales no fue posible completar la información financiera en 43, por lo que al final el tamaño de la muestra fue de 147. En nuestro estudio el mayor consumo de recursos se encontró en aquellos que ingresaron por sepsis y en todos los grupos los que tuvieron mayor peso fueron el pago del recurso humano y en segunda instancia la nutrición, comportamiento que sigue la tendencia descrita en artículos escritos en países con alto desarrollo tecnológico, a pesar de las diferencias claras en los sistemas de atención en salud. Conclusión: la distribución de los componentes de costos de atención en la UCI analizada concuerda con otros estudios extranjeros. El desarrollo en los sistemas de información y el conocimiento del costo detallado constituyen una herramienta indispensable para la toma de decisiones.

Repercusión económica y farmacológica en las unidades de terapia intensiva / Economic and pharmacological repercussion of the intensive care units

La medicina crítica, depende fundamentalmente del médico y la enfermera, pero el cuidado y el tratamiento del paciente crítico está relacionado con el uso apropiado de los recursos disponibles. A pesar de su extenso desarrollo, el costo elevado de la tecnología limita su uso en muchos países; en otros, la medicina crítica se ha vuelto elitista. El intensivista debe ser compulsivo, pero también debe ser realista y adecuar la aplicación de los recursos tomando en cuenta la calidad de vida y las consideraciones sociales, políticas y económicas. El explosivo crecimiento de la medicina crítica, su costo elevado y las maneras diversas en que esta especialidad se ha desarrollado, ha llevado a los médicos, administradores de hospitales y a los economistas a cuestionar la aplicación y eficacia del cuidado intensivo. La implementación de estrategias para el ahorro requiere de métodos específicos que permitan predecir la evolución de la enfermedad