Costing hospital resources for stroke patients using phase-type models.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare management
• Health economics
• Biostatistics

Background:

• Healthcare facilities face increasing demands due to population growth, necessitating resource optimization.
• Stroke disease incurs significant costs (e.g., £7 billion annually in the UK) and prolonged hospital stays, impacting resource utilization.
• Thrombolysis, a clot-dissolving drug therapy, can reduce long-term institutionalization for eligible stroke patients if administered within 3 hours but is expensive.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model the cost of treating stroke patients within a healthcare facility.
• To evaluate the economic viability of increasing thrombolysis usage.
• To determine if the benefits of thrombolysis outweigh its administration costs.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a mixture of Coxian phase type models with multiple absorbing states for cost analysis.
• Modeled patient flow and resource consumption throughout the treatment pathway.
• Analyzed cost-effectiveness of thrombolysis administration.

Main Results:

• The study provides a framework for modeling healthcare resource utilization for stroke patients.
• Identified key cost drivers in stroke patient treatment.
• Quantified the potential economic impact of increased thrombolysis administration.

Conclusions:

• Resource optimization in healthcare is vital for meeting population needs.
• The cost-effectiveness of thrombolysis requires careful consideration of administration expenses versus long-term savings.
• Further analysis can inform policy decisions regarding thrombolysis implementation to improve patient outcomes and resource allocation.