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BMC Health Services Research
Published in: BMC Health Services Research 1/2017

Open Access 01-12-2017 | Research article

Hospital characteristics related to the hospital length of stay among inpatients receiving invasive cervical discectomy due to road traffic accidents under automobile insurance in South Korea

Authors: Kyoung Won Shin, Hyo Jung Lee, Chung Mo Nam, Ki Tae Moon, Eun-Cheol Park

Published in: BMC Health Services Research | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Background

In South Korea, people injured in road traffic accidents receive compensation for medical costs through their automobile insurance. However, the automobile insurance system appears to manage health care inefficiently. This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with the hospital length of stay (LOS), which was used as an indicator of healthcare utilization, for inpatients covered by automobile insurance and undergoing invasive cervical discectomy.

Methods

Insurance claims data from 158 hospitals were used. The study included 850 inpatients who were involved in automobile accidents in 2014 and 2015 and who underwent invasive cervical discectomy. Poisson regression analysis was performed to examine the associations between the LOS and hospital-level characteristics.

Results

The mean LOS for inpatients covered by automobile insurance was 25.75 days. A higher proportion of inpatients with automobile insurance were associated with a longer LOS (rate ratio [RR]: 1.027 per 1% increase, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.012–1.042). A higher hospital volume of invasive cervical discectomy (RR: 0.970 per 10 case increase, 95% CI: 0.945–0.997), bed turnover rate (RR: 0.988 per 1 increase, 95% CI: 0.979–0.997), and number of neurosurgeons or orthopedic specialists (RR: 0.930 per 1/100 beds increase, 95% CI: 0.876–0.987) were associated with a shorter LOS.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that inpatients covered by automobile insurance were associated with a longer LOS when treated at small-sized, low-provider, and low-volume hospitals with high proportions of such patients. Based on these findings, policymakers and healthcare professionals ought to consider improved strategies for efficient management of automobile insurance for inpatients in small-sized hospitals.
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Metadata
Title
Hospital characteristics related to the hospital length of stay among inpatients receiving invasive cervical discectomy due to road traffic accidents under automobile insurance in South Korea
Authors
Kyoung Won Shin
Hyo Jung Lee
Chung Mo Nam
Ki Tae Moon
Eun-Cheol Park
Publication date
01-12-2017
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Health Services Research / Issue 1/2017
Electronic ISSN: 1472-6963
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-017-2518-3

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