Clinical and economic impact of the Multimorbid Patient Unit

Managing patients with a high burden of chronic conditions and multiple pathologies poses a challenge to the sustainability of the health care system. We evaluated the impact of establishing a Multimorbidity Patient Unit (MUP) on reducing emergency department visits and hospital admissions.

This was a pre-post observational study that included patients enrolled in the MUP between November 2022 and December 2023. Demographic and clinical variables were analyzed, as well as the number of emergency department visits and hospital admissions before and after enrollment. The savings resulting from the implementation of the unit were estimated.

Eighty-six patients were included (mean age 81.2 years; 52.3% male), with the most prevalent diagnoses being heart failure (97.7%), hypertension (95.3%), and chronic kidney disease (91.9%). Avoidable emergency room visits decreased by 64.18% and avoidable hospital admissions decreased by 64.47%. The estimated savings during the study period was ;541,723.20. "The MUP proved to be a highly cost-effective intervention, significantly reducing avoidable healthcare utilization and improving continuity of care".