Implementing a Rapid Response System in a tertiary-care hospital. A cost-effectiveness study

Area of Science:

• Healthcare management
• Clinical safety
• Health economics

Background:

• Adverse events (AE) in hospitalized patients significantly increase disability, mortality, and public health costs.
• Rapid Response Systems (RRS) are implemented to identify at-risk patients and enable preventive measures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a cost-effectiveness analysis of implementing an RRS in a tertiary-care hospital.
• To evaluate the budgetary impact of RRS implementation from a hospital perspective over five years.

Main Methods:

• A cost-effectiveness analysis comparing RRS versus non-RRS was performed.
• Effectiveness was defined by improvements in health outcomes (AE, cardiopulmonary arrest, mortality), sourced from literature.
• A 5-year budget impact analysis was conducted for RRS implementation.

Main Results:

• The study included 42,409 patients, with 448 (1.05%) experiencing severe AE requiring ICU admission.
• RRS demonstrated an incremental cost saving of EUR 1,471,101 compared to non-RRS.
• Budget impact analysis projected cost reductions of EUR 896,762 in year one and EUR 1,588,579 annually from year two to five.

Conclusions:

• The RRS is a dominant strategy, proving less costly and more effective than the non-RRS approach.
• RRS implementation offers significant cost savings and improved patient safety in tertiary-care settings.