Resource utilization and disaggregated cost analysis of bariatric surgery in the Australian public healthcare system

Qing Xia (), Julie Campbell, Hasnat Ahmad, Barbara Graaff, Lei Si, Petr Otahal, Kevin Ratcliffe, Julie Turtle, John Marrone, Mohammed Huque, Barry Hagan, Matthew Green and Andrew J. Palmer ()
Additional contact information
Qing Xia: University of Tasmania
Hasnat Ahmad: University of Tasmania
Barbara Graaff: University of Tasmania
Lei Si: University of New South Wales
Petr Otahal: University of Tasmania
Kevin Ratcliffe: Tasmanian State Government
Julie Turtle: Tasmanian State Government
John Marrone: Tasmanian State Government
Mohammed Huque: Tasmanian State Government
Barry Hagan: Tasmanian State Government
Matthew Green: Tasmanian State Government
Andrew J. Palmer: University of Tasmania

The European Journal of Health Economics, 2022, vol. 23, issue 6, No 3, 952 pages

Abstract: Abstract Objectives To present a comprehensive real-world micro-costing analysis of bariatric surgery. Methods Patients were included if they underwent primary bariatric surgery (gastric banding [GB], gastric bypass [GBP] and sleeve gastrectomy [SG]) between 2013 and 2019. Costs were disaggregated into cost items and average-per-patient costs from the Australian healthcare systems perspective were expressed in constant 2019 Australian dollars for the entire cohort and subgroup analysis. Annual population-based costs were calculated to capture longitudinal trends. A generalized linear model (GLM) predicted the overall bariatric-related costs. Results N = 240 publicly funded patients were included, with the waitlist times of ≤ 10.7 years. The mean direct costs were $11,269. The operating theatre constituted the largest component of bariatric-related costs, followed by medical supplies, salaries, critical care use, and labour on-costs. Average cost for SG ($12,632) and GBP ($15,041) was higher than that for GB ($10,049). Operating theatre accounted for the largest component for SG/GBP costs, whilst medical supplies were the largest for GB. We observed an increase in SG and a decrease in GB procedures over time. Correspondingly, the main cost driver changed from medical supplies in 2014–2015 for GB procedures to operating theatre for SG thereafter. GLM model estimates of bariatric average cost ranged from $7,580 to $36,633. Conclusions We presented the first detailed characterization of the scale, disaggregated profile and determinants of bariatric-related costs, and examined the evolution of resource utilization patterns and costs, reflecting the shift in the Australian bariatric landscape over time. Understanding these patterns and forecasting of future changes are critical for efficient resource allocation.

Keywords: Bariatric surgery; Cost bucket; Disaggregated data; Micro-costing analysis; Public healthcare system; Sleeve gastrectomy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10198-021-01405-x Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:eujhec:v:23:y:2022:i:6:d:10.1007_s10198-021-01405-x

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... cs/journal/10198/PS2

DOI: 10.1007/s10198-021-01405-x

Access Statistics for this article

The European Journal of Health Economics is currently edited by J.-M.G.v.d. Schulenburg

More articles in The European Journal of Health Economics from Springer, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ) Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().