Teaching and hospital costs: the case of radiology

Investigates production and cost effects of teaching in radiology departments. If students are substitutes for physicians, production costs may be less in teaching than in non-teaching hospitals for a given level of output. Empirical results for Veterans Administration hospitals suggest that teaching reduces costs for most radiology procedures. If teaching can reduce costs of primary products, teaching hospitals may be able to provide a given program of patient care at lower costs than non-teaching hospitals. However, costs might still be higher at teaching hospitals than non-teaching hospitals because of differences in case mix, medical techniques, or quality of care.