Introducing DRGs into Greek National Healthcare System, in 27 Weeks

Experiencing a devastating and intolerable economic crisis in Greece, the National Healthcare System (GR-NHS) needed a tool to manage expenditures and quality of healthcare services. The adoption of the Australian Disease Related Group (AU-DRG) system along with the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) constituted the major components of the needed tool. The tool provided the means to perform the transformation of the applying reimbursement system and at the same time to monitor and control expenditures and quality of GR-NHS. The prevailing fiscal conditions urged and obliged to design and implement a project regarding the introduction of a DRG system into GR-NHS in the limiting time period of 6 months or 27 weeks. The project utilized solely the available resources of the Ministry of Health with the direct support from the largest Health Insurance Fund (IKA). The aim of the project was to enable all hospitals demanding reimbursement from Social Security to use the developed KEN-DRG system. At the same time, the Social Security would be capable of controlling and budgeting the expenditures for beneficiaries and the Ministry of Health could control and assess the expenditures and the offered quality of services using the newly developed system.