Background: A lack of knowledge exists on real world hospital strategies that seek to improve quality, while reducing or containing costs. The aim of this study is to identify hospitals that have implemented such strategies and determine factors influencing the implementation. Methods: We searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library and EconLit for case studies on hospital-wide strategies aiming to increase quality and reduce costs. Additionally, grey literature databases, Google and selected websites were searched. We used inductive coding to identify factors relating to implementation of the strategies. Results: The literature search identified 4198 papers, of which our included 17 papers describe 19 case studies from five countries, mostly from the US. To accomplish their goals, hospitals use different management strategies, such as continuous quality improvement, clinical pathways, Lean, Six Sigma and value-based healthcare. Reported effects on both quality and costs are predominantly positive. Factors identified to be relevant for implementation were categorized in eleven themes: 1) strategy, 2) leadership, 3) engagement, 4) reorganization, 5) finances, 6) data and information technology (IT), 7) projects, 8) support, 9) skill development, 10) culture, and 11) communication. Recurring barriers for implementation are a lack of physician engagement, insufficient financial support, and poor data collection. Conclusion: Hospital strategies that explicitly aim to provide high quality care at low costs may be a promising option to bend the cost curve while improving quality. We found a limited amount of studies, and varying contexts across case studies. This underlines the importance of integrated evaluation research. When implementing a quality enhancing, cost reducing strategy, we recommend considering eleven conditions for successful implementation that we were able to derive from the literature.
Background: Hospital strategies aimed at increasing quality of care and simultaneously reducing costs show potential to improve healthcare, but knowledge on real-world effectiveness is limited. In 2014, two Dutch hospitals introduced such quality-driven strategies. Our aim was to evaluate contexts, mechanisms, and outcomes of both strategies using multiple perspectives. Methods: We conducted a mixed methods evaluation. Four streams of data were collected and analysed: (1) semi-structured interviewing of 62 stakeholders, such as medical doctors, nurses, managers, general practitioners and consultants; (2) financial statements of both organisations and other hospitals in the Netherlands (counterfactual); (3) national database of quality indicators, and patient-reported experiences; (4) existing material on strategy development and effects. Results: Both strategies resulted in a relative decrease in volume of care within the hospital, while quality of care has not been affected negatively. One hospital failed to cut operating costs sufficiently, resulting in declining profit margins. We identified six main mechanisms that impacted these outcomes: (1) Quality-improvement projects spur change and commitment; (2) increased coordination between hospital and primary care leads to substitution of care; (3) insufficient use of data and support hinder quality improvement; (4) scaling down hospital facilities is required to convert volume reductions to cost savings; (5) shared savings through global budgets lead to shared efforts between payer and hospital; and (6) financial security for physicians facilitates shift towards quality-driven care. Conclusion: This integrated analysis of mixed data sources demonstrated that the institutionwide nature of the strategies has induced a shift from a focus on production towards quality of care. Longer-term (financial) sustainability of hospital strategies aimed at decelerating production growth requires significant efforts in reducing fixed costs. This strategy poses financial risks for the hospital if operating costs are insufficiently reduced or if payer alignment is compromised.
Health systems invest in coordination and collaboration between emergency departments (ED) and after-hours primary care providers (AHPCs) to alleviate pressure on the acute care chain. There are substantial gaps in the existing evidence, limited in sample size, follow-up care, and costs. We assess whether acute care collaborations (ACCs) are associated with decreased ED utilization, hospital admission rates, and lower costs per patient journey, compared with stand-alone facilities. The design is a quasi-experimental study using claims data. The study included 610 845 patients in the Netherlands (2017). Patient visits in ACCs were compared to stand-alone EDs and AHPCs. The number of comorbidities was similar in both groups. Multiple logistic and gamma regressions were used to determine whether patient visits to ACCs were negatively associated with ED utilization, hospital admission rates, and costs. Logistic regression analysis did not find an association between patients visiting ACCs and ED utilization compared to patients visiting stand-alone facilities [odds ratio (OR), 1.01; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.00–1.03]. However, patients in ACCs were associated with an increase in hospital admissions (OR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.04–1.09). ACCs were associated with higher total costs incurred during the patient journey (OR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.01–1.03). Collaboration between EDs and AHPCs was not associated with ED utilization, but was associated with increased hospital admission rates, and higher costs. These collaborations do not seem to improve health systems’ financial sustainability.
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