Evaluation of per-procedure equipment costs in an outpatient endoscopy center

As disposable endoscopes become available, we need baseline costs associated with reusable instruments to make financially intelligent choices. Accordingly, we analyzed the per-use cost of several types of gastrointestinal endoscopes at our institution.

Records of 44 gastrointestinal endoscopes were analyzed. Data defined included purchase price, repair and cleaning expense (labor and materials), and number of uses. The labor cost per-use associated with endoscope cleaning was estimated by taking an average time required to clean an endoscope multiplied by the technician's salary.

The average number of years of endoscope use varied from 4.6 to 6.9 years contingent on the type of endoscope. For flexible sigmoidoscopes, the average total cost per use was $8.35, and for colonoscopes the cost was $21.81. For gastroscopes and diagnostic and therapeutic duodenoscopes, costs were $20.99, $49.15, and $45.16, respectively.

(1) Excluding costs associated with the procedure itself (admit-recovery, drugs, disposable equipment, and procedural personnel), total peruse scope cost ranged from a low of $8.35 for the flexible sigmoidoscope to $49.15 for the diagnostic duodenoscope. (2) The most important variables associated with per-use endoscope cost included number of uses, initial purchase price, and repair costs. (3) Techniques such as the above can be used to define per-procedure costs for a particular practitioner or institution.