Physician-Targeted Interventions Reduce Surgical Expense and Improve Value-Driven Health Outcomes.

Area of Science:

• Health Economics
• Surgical Outcomes
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• US healthcare costs are high without superior outcomes compared to other nations.
• Physician-focused cost-reduction strategies may enhance value-based healthcare.
• Total thyroidectomy is a common surgical procedure with significant associated costs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the efficacy of physician-targeted interventions in lowering surgical expenses for total thyroidectomies.
• To evaluate the impact of these interventions on clinical outcomes.
• To compare intervention effectiveness between endocrine surgery and otolaryngology services.

Main Methods:

• Two distinct face-to-face interventions targeting surgical expenses were implemented in endocrine surgery and otolaryngology departments in June 2016.
• A pre-intervention period (December 2014-June 2016) and a post-intervention period (July 2016-January 2018) were analyzed.
• Differences-in-differences analysis compared pre- and post-intervention cost metrics (total, fixed, variable costs) and clinical outcomes (30-day readmission rate, length of stay).

Main Results:

• Patient demographics were consistent between pre- and post-intervention groups.
• Post-intervention, both healthcare costs and clinical outcomes showed improvement or remained stable.
• Endocrine surgery achieved significantly greater post-intervention savings per surgery compared to otolaryngology, with mean total cost reductions of $607.84 (P < 0.0001).

Conclusions:

• Physician-targeted interventions are a viable strategy for reducing surgical costs and enhancing patient health outcomes.
• The impact of such interventions may vary depending on surgical specialty.
• Standardization of these interventions is recommended for future evaluation of their broader effects on hospital costs and patient care.