The impact of hospital-acquired Clostridium difficile.
J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2012 Jul 31;
Authors: Lipp MJ, Nero DC, Callahan MA
Abstract
Objective:? To investigate the impact of hospital-acquired Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) on hospital costs and patient length of stay. Methods:? Data from the 2007-2008 New York State Department of Health's Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) database was analyzed using regression analysis and descriptive statistics. Results:? After analysis of 4,853,800 patient discharges, the incidence rate of hospital-acquired CDI was 0.8 cases per 1,000 discharges. The estimated marginal cost associated with each hospital infection was approximately $29,000. The estimated annual cost CDI in New York State was approximately $55 million with nearly 23,000 additional hospital days. Conclusions:? The development of hospital-acquired CDI is associated with a significant increase in hospital costs and patient length of stay. Extrapolation of these estimates to all U.S. hospitals suggests this condition represents a major burden to the U.S. healthcare system. Our findings may help hospitals understand the impact of these infections, as well as potential implications if deemed preventable by CMS and/or private payers. Additionally, this information may benefit hospitals or health care systems transitioning to alternative payment models, such as episode-based payments or accountable care. Healthcare providers and hospitals would benefit from better understanding the impact and frequency of these infections in order to best target preventive strategies. © 2012 Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Foundation and Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.
PMID: 22849881 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]