Health Care Value in Plastic Surgery Practice

Abstract

Summary: As value-based care gains traction in response to towering health care expenditures and issues of health care inequity, hospital capacity, and labor shortages, it is important to consider how a value-based approach can be achieved in plastic surgery. Value is defined as outcomes divided by costs across entire cycles of care. Drawing on previous studies and policies, this article identifies key opportunities in plastic surgery to move the levers of costs and outcomes to deliver higher value care. Specifically, outcomes in plastic surgery should include conventional measures of complication rates and patient-reported outcome measures to drive quality improvement and benchmark payments. Meanwhile, cost reduction in plastic surgery can be achieved through value-based payment reform, efficient workflows, evidence-based and cost-conscious selection of medical devices, and greater use of outpatient surgical facilities. Lastly, the authors discuss how the diminished presence of third-party payers in aesthetic surgery exemplifies the cost-conscious and patient-centered nature of value-based plastic surgery. To lead in future health policy and care delivery reform, plastic surgeons should strive for high-value care, remain open to new ways of care delivery, and understand how plastic surgery fits into overall health care delivery.

Cost Reduction in Plastic Surgery

“…Because the widely accepted value equation, value = (quality + outcomes)/cost, has been applied to plastic surgery, studies have reported ways to increase value by optimizing outcomes 2 . Recent studies have pushed for more transparency in outcomes reporting to incentivize quality over more quantitative performance measures (ie, time to see a consult) 3,4 …”

Discussion: Health Care Value in Plastic Surgery Practice

“…In the article by Yang et al, 1 the authors summarize information on the potential implementation of bundled payment models in plastic surgery. They follow this with several cost-saving suggestions to tackle the inevitable reimbursement decline, including transitioning care to ambulatory surgery centers, streamlining preoperative and postoperative care, and information exchange among surgeons and hospitals to help decrease device costs.…”