Can Emergency Medicine Residents Predict Cost of Diagnostic Testing?

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Health Economics
• Emergency Medicine

Background:

• Diagnostic testing constitutes a substantial part of healthcare expenditure.
• Lack of awareness regarding diagnostic test costs can lead to unnecessary spending.
• Previous studies have not assessed cost knowledge among emergency medicine residents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the cost awareness of diagnostic tests among emergency medicine residents.
• To identify discrepancies between resident cost estimations and actual patient charges.
• To explore the relationship between training level and cost estimation accuracy.

Main Methods:

• A survey was distributed to 20 emergency medicine residents.
• Residents estimated patient charges for 20 common laboratory tests and 7 radiological exams.
• Responses were compared across different residency training levels.

Main Results:

• A 100% survey completion rate was achieved.
• Significant underestimations of actual costs were observed for both laboratory and radiological tests.
• Median underestimation was $114 for lab tests, $57 for radiographs, and $1,058 for CT scans.
• Cost estimation accuracy improved with higher training levels.

Conclusions:

• Emergency medicine residents demonstrate a poor understanding of diagnostic test costs.
• This lack of awareness can affect decision-making regarding test ordering.
• Integrating cost education into emergency medicine residency curricula is recommended.