Unexplained differences in trauma care costs across the U.S.

Source：Johns Hopkins Medicine Release Date：2012-08-20 333

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BALTIMORE – A large-scale review of national patient records conducted by researchers from Johns Hopkins University reveals that while survival rates were the same, the cost of treating trauma patients in the western United States is 33% higher than the cost of treating similarly injured patients in the Northeast. Overall, treatment costs were lower in the Northeast than anywhere in the US.

The findings were published in The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery.

The researchers suggest that skyrocketing health care costs could be reduced if analysts focus on how caregivers in lower-cost regions manage their patients.

“Spending more doesn’t always mean saving more lives,” at least in the case of trauma care, says study leader Adil H. Haider, M.D., M.P.H., an associate professor of surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and director of Hopkins’ Center for Surgical Trials and Outcomes Research.

“If doctors in the Northeast do things more economically and with good results, why can’t doctors out West do the same thing? This study provides a potential road map for cutting unnecessary costs without hurting outcomes,” he adds.

Researchers say they don’t know exactly why costs vary by region. Haider says that it is possible that in one part of the country, it may be customary to do an expensive type of medical test prior to treatment, while in other parts, that test may not be done.

However, Haider cautions that when looking for ways to cut costs, researchers should look closely at outcomes beyond survival alone to make sure the more expensive care isn’t better in some way. For example, it may be possible, he says, that higher-cost regions have patients with less pain and fewer disabilities after recovery.

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