En plena crisis económica: coste y efectividad de las unidades de estancia corta hospitalarias / Economic crisis: cost and effectiveness of short stay hospital units

Fundamento. La duración de la estancia es el principal determinante del coste de una hospitalización, por lo que se deben implementar estrategias para reducir la estancia hospitalaria convencional manteniéndose los niveles de calidad. Las Unidades de Estancia Corta (UEC) nacen con el objetivo de disminuir la estancia hospitalaria en un grupo de patologias y pacientes determinados. El objetivo de este original es evaluar la bibliografía existentes obre la evidencia de la disminución del periodo de estancia, eficiencia, reconsultas en los servicios de urgencias, coste-efectividad, y mortalidad de estas unidades. Método. Se realizó una revisión sistemática de las publicaciones que aparecen en la literatura, utilizando los términos MeSH "Observation Unit", "Short-Stay Ward", "Monday to Friday Clinic", "Monaday to Friday Surgery Ward", "Short Stay Hospitalization", "Alternative to Convencional Hospitalization", "Alternative Admissions" en la base de datos MEDLINE, Web of Knowledgey la Cochrane Library desde el 1 de enero de 1960 al 1de enero del 2012. Los estudios revisados se seleccionaron según la US Preventive Services Task Force Protocol. Resultados. Las UEC permiten en grupos determinados de pacientes, disminuir el periodo de estancia, mantenerla eficiencia, no mostrando incrementos de los reingresos por urgencias, ni la mortalidad. Conclusiones. Las UEC pueden ser un instrumento para disminuir el coste del proceso sanitario en un grupo de patologias determinadas(AU)

Background. Length of stay is the main determinant of the cost of hospitalization, which is why strategies must be implemented to reduce conventional hospital stays while maintaining quality levels. Short Stay Units (SSU) were created with the aim of reducing hospital stays ina certain group of patients and pathologies. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the literature on the evidence of decreased length of stay, efficiency, readmissions in the emergency department, cost-effectiveness, and mortality of these units. Methods. We made a systematic review of the literature, using the Me SH terms "Observation Unit", "Short-Stay Ward", "Monday to Friday Clinic", "Monday to Friday Surgery Ward", "Short Stay Hospitalization", "Alternative to Conventional Hospitalization", "Alternative Admissions" in the MEDLINE database, Web of Knowledge and the Cochrane Library from January 11960 to January 1 2012. The studies reviewed were selected according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Protocol. Results. The SSU made it possible in certain groups of patients to reduce the period of stay and maintain efficiency, showing no increases in emergency readmissions or mortality. Conclusions. The SSU can be an instrument to reduce the cost of the health process in a certain group of pathologies(AU)

[Economic crisis: cost and effectiveness of short stay hospital units]. / En plena crisis económica: coste y efectividad de las unidades de estancia corta hospitalarias.

BACKGROUND: Length of stay is the main determinant of the cost of hospitalization, which is why strategies must be implemented to reduce conventional hospital stays while maintaining quality levels. Short Stay Units (SSU) were created with the aim of reducing hospital stays in a certain group of patients and pathologies. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the literature on the evidence of decreased length of stay, efficiency, readmissions in the emergency department, cost-effectiveness, and mortality of these units. METHODS: We made a systematic review of the literature, using the MeSH terms "Observation Unit", "Short-Stay Ward", "Monday to Friday Clinic" , "Monday to Friday Surgery Ward", "Short Stay Hospitalization", "Alternative to Conventional Hospitalization", "Alternative Admissions" in the MEDLINE database, Web of Knowledge and the Cochrane Library from January 1 1960 to January 1 2012. The studies reviewed were selected according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Protocol. RESULTS: The SSU made it possible in certain groups of patients to reduce the period of stay and maintain efficiency, showing no increases in emergency readmissions or mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The SSU can be an instrument to reduce the cost of the health process in a certain group of pathologies.