• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.22 no.4 s.28
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• pp.542-554
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• 1989

The skyrocketing inflation of medical costs has become a major health problem among most developed countries. Korea, which recently covered the entire population with National Health Insurance, is facing the same problem. The proportion of health expenditure to GNP has increased from 3% to 4.8% during the last decade. This was remarkable, if we consider the rapid economic growth during that time. A few policy analysts began to raise cost containment as an agenda, after recognizing the importance of medical cost inflation. In order to Prepare an appropriate alternative for the agenda, it is necessary to find out reasons for the cost inflation. Then, we should focus on the reasons which are controllable, and those whose control are socially desirable. This study is designed to articulate the theory of medical cost inflation through literature reviews, to find out reasons for cost inflation, by analyzing aggregated data with a deterministic model. Finally to identify determinants of changes in both medical demand and service intensity which are major reasons for cost inflation. The reasons for cost inflation are classified into cost push inflation and demand pull inflation, The former consists of increases in price and intensity of services, while the latter is made of consumer derived demand and supplier induced demand. We used a time series (1983-1987), and cross sectional (over regions) data of health insurance. The deterministic model reveals, that an increase in service intensity is a major cause of inflation in the case of inpatient care, while, more utilization, is a primary attribute in the case of physician visits. Multiple regression analysis shows that an increase in hospital beds is a leading explanatory variable for the increase in hospital care. It also reveals, that an introduction of a deductible clause, an increase in hospital beds and degree of urbanization, are statistically significant variables explaining physician visits. The results are consistent with the existing theory, The magnitude of service intensity is influenced by the level of co-payment, the proportion of old age and an increase in co-payment. In short, an increase in co-payment reduced the utilization, but it induced more intensities or services. We can conclude that the strict fee regulation or increase in the level of co-payment can not be an effective measure for cost containment under the fee for service system. Because the provider can react against the regulation by inducing more services.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.22 no.2 s.26
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• pp.223-235
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• 1989

To grasp the idea about how drugs are used under Medical Insurance Scheme, the amount and share of drug cost in the total medical fee have been reviewed and analyzed for different types of patients (in-patient out-patient), medical institutions and frequently seen diseases and following findings were revealed. In 1986, drug cost took 32.78% of total medical fee for in-patients and 32.98% for out-patients averaged over 30% share as a whole. When drug cost per case in 1980 be indexed to 100, it has shown steady growth to become 200 for in-patients and about 150 for out-patients in 1986. The contribution of drug cost to the total medical fee is, regardless of patient type-in-patients and out-patients, the highest in University hospitals and followed by General hospitals, Hospitals and Clinics in decending order That for the most frequent 10 diseases came out the highest,79 a with the essential benign hypertension of out-patients in the General hospitals, 61% for the gastric ulcer of out-patients in Hospitals and 33% for the female genital diseases of out-patients in Clinics. The drug cost of oral formula was contributed the most, 7.93% by cardiovascular agents followed by hepatic detoxicants(5.47%) and out-patients(4.93%), and that of injectable formula was contributed the most by antibiotics(24.17%), followed by protein amino-acid preparations(6.19%). The order of drug usage by specialty for the in-patients was the highest with internal medicine followed by general surgery and E.N.T, and that for the out-parients was in the order of Internal medicine, neuropsychology and Ob/Gy. This study revealed that the drug dependency was characteristically different to specialty. In view of the fact that drug cost on average exceeds over 30% of total medical fee, proper drug administration appears to be vitally important for the stabilization of the financial standing of the Medical Insurance Scheme. As a consequence, drug usage guidelines including antibiotics usage shall be established first of all and the voluntary participation for the regulation of drug usage and propagation of the guidelines to medical institutions are strongly coerced.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.300-306
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• 2003

Purpose: This study was done to help provide patients with information on medical insurance cost through medical insurance education for nurses, to increase effective management, check on omissions in treatment and appropriateness and accuracy of fees, and to contribute to the economic growth of hospital by providing nurses with necessary knowledge about medical insurance cost. Method: The participants in this study were clinical nurses in general hospitals. The study instrument was a questionnaire developed by the researcher through reference to data for medical insurance education. The data were analyzed with percentages, means, ANOVA, and Duncan method using SPSS PC+10. Result: The results on knowledge of medical insurance according to general characteristics of the nurses showed that there were significant differences according to age: (p=.0036) highest level of education (p=.0007), position (p=.0010) and place where education on medical insurance was received (p=.0093). Conclusion: Continuous in-service education for clinical nurses is reflected in increased knowledge about medical insurance costs but special attention needs to be given to younger nurses and nurses with less education, as well as staff nurses, and those nurses who only received education on medical insurance during their schooling. Accordingly, in-service education is necessary for nurses at the time of orientation so that they have knowledge on standards for recuperation allowance, guidelines to calculate material costs, and guidelines to calculate drug rates. In addition, as medical insurance cost frequently change, all nurses need continuous in-service education.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.101-109
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• 2012

This study purposed to analyze the differences of cost, length of stay, and number of visits between patients who referred from clinics to a general hospital and patients who directly visit a general hospital. Study sample included 402 patients (177 patients who were not referred from clinics, 225 patients who referred from clinics) who visited the Dept. of Gastroenterology in a university hospital in Daejeon from January to June in 2007. Cost and patients' information were collected from Hospital Information System and medical record. SPSS v.12.0 was used for the statistical analysis. Multiple regression analysis found that for inpatients, location variables and malignant tumors of digestive organs had a significant influence on cost variable. For outpatients, a referring hospital type and visiting month had significant influences on total cost, and sex and visiting month (February) had significant relationship with number of visit. The study results help to understand the differences of patient care depending on whether they were referred from clinics or not. Hospital managements could use the results for marketing purposes, and it could provide valuable information for increasing the competitiveness of hospital in a given market.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.19
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• pp.8229-8237
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• 2014

Background: Organized cervical screening has decreased the incidence of cervical cancer. However, screening strategies vary in different countries. Objectives: We performed a systematic review to evaluate the economic aspects of different screening methods. Materials and Methods: We searched databases and then data were abstracted from each study. We evaluated articles based on different types of screening tests as well as screening age and intervals, and using incremental cost effectiveness ratio via calculating quality adjusted life years (QALY), or life years gained (LYG) per cost. We compared the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of each study using GDP per capita. Furthermore, we compared national guidelines with recommendations of cost-effectiveness studies in different countries. Results: A total of 21 articles met our criteria, of which 19 studies showed that HPV DNA testing, 13 suggested an age of 30 years or more, and 10 papers concluded that at least a 5-year or longer interval were the most cost-effective strategies. In some countries, the national guidelines did not match the recommendations of the cost-effectiveness studies. Conclusions: HPV testing, starting at age 30 years or older and repeated at 5-year or longer intervals, is the most cost-effective strategy in any setting. Closer collaboration with health economists is required during guideline development.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.415-423
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• 2022

Economic evaluations in the healthcare are used to assess economic efficiency of pharmaceuticals and medical interventions such as diagnoses and medical procedures. This study introduces the main concepts of economic evaluation across its key steps: planning, outcome and cost calculation, modeling, cost-effectiveness results, uncertainty analysis, and decision-making. When planning an economic evaluation, we determine the study population, intervention, comparators, perspectives, time horizon, discount rates, and type of economic evaluation. In healthcare economic evaluations, outcomes include changes in mortality, the survival rate, life years, and quality-adjusted life years, while costs include medical, non-medical, and productivity costs. Model-based economic evaluations, including decision tree and Markov models, are mainly used to calculate the total costs and total effects. In cost-effectiveness or costutility analyses, cost-effectiveness is evaluated using the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio, which is the additional cost per one additional unit of effectiveness gained by an intervention compared with a comparator. All outcomes have uncertainties owing to limited evidence, diverse methodologies, and unexplained variation. Thus, researchers should review these uncertainties and confirm their robustness. We hope to contribute to the establishment and dissemination of economic evaluation methodologies that reflect Korean clinical and research environment and ultimately improve the rationality of healthcare policies.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.81-103
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• 2013

This study is to research cost accounting practice and to analyze propriety of patients' medical payment in artificiality kidney center. The researched cost datum of the year 2012 are as follows. - Hemodialysis medical treatment was reimbursed as much as 158,001 won in case of health insured patients, but payed-off as much as 135,810 won. - The average figure of the total hospitals and clinic center is 1,603,303 won, and one time cost of hemodialysis treatment is 154,487 won. Optimal treatment pay are suggested as follows. First, Regardless of the notified classification from MOHW(Ministry of Health and Welfare), 136,000 won of fixed price payment classification needs to be reclassified by patients, severity and tobe rearranged by fixed price payment system of hospitals. Second, Fixed payment code notified by the Ministry of Health and Welfare is recommended to be simplifies and to reflect according to contents of the medical treatment rendered to patients. Third, Establishment of artificial kidney center has to be risk managed because of its huge investment. Fourth, Cost analysis model has to be maintained as basis together with appropriate application of conversion index model mixed with SGR model.

• Journal of Home Health Care Nursing
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.119-126
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• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify clubhouses general characteristics, core services, funding sources and costs in Korean Clubhouse Model, and to compare with Korean and international clubhouses. We explored the annual budget, cost per member, and cost per visit for 1 year. Methods: The data were collected from 14 Korean clubhouses and analyzed using descriptive statistics and Spearman's rank correlation with the SPSS 14.0 program. Results: The average of clubhouse operating period was 8.2 years. There were an average of 40.4 active members; among them, 84.1% were schizophrenia. In addition, there were an average of 5.8 staff and 15.3 services in each clubhouse. Cost estimates were as follows: annual budget (excluding housing) $223.633, cost per member $5,704, and cost per visit $21.35. There were significant difference among the annual budget, number of staff, number of service, and active members, but hours of Work-Ordered Day and social activities hours were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Findings provide a more understanding of operations, programs, and costs of Korean clubhouses.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.1-29
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• 1999

The Government has recently planned to improve the medical insurance drug price systems by removing the drug margin occurring from the difference between the official and purchasing prices, and instead by setting prices through adding drug administration casts calculated to the purchasing costs. In the circumstances, the major policy and implementing issues are how to define the drug administrance cost and how to calculate them. This study attempts to provide for the conceptional and operational definitions and thereby develop a costing model for the cost. The relationship between the current systems of medical services costs and prices were reviewed to define the concept of the costs. The study defined the costs from the narrow and wide prospective of meaning, and three operational definitions were provided. The costing model was developed applying the departmental costing principles. Finally, several prerequisites that have to be considered for the implementation of the definition and the model from the practical viewpoint.

• Korean Medical Education Review
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.273-284
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• 2023

According to the World Health Organization, for medical schools to fulfill their obligation of social accountability, it is necessary for medical education, research, and service areas to ref lect the healthcare system's relevance, quality, cost-effectiveness, and equity. This study utilized Boelen and Heck's (1995) social accountability grid model to analyze the degree to which the Accreditation Standards of Korean Institute of Medical Education and Evaluation 2019 (ASK2019) standards apply the World Federation for Medical Education's (WFME) standards. The social accountability characteristics of the former were compared to those of the WFME, the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, and the Australian Medical Council. Experts with experience and certification in medical education and evaluation classified the ASK2019 standards according to the grid model, evaluated social accountability perspectives, and categorized them according to the process, content, and outcome. Of the 92 standards, 61 (66.30%) were selected as social accountability standards; these encompassed all areas. There was a particular focus on outcome-related areas, such as "mission and outcomes," "student assessment," "educational evaluation," and "continuous improvement." Education and quality were the most common (33, 54.11%), followed by 18 standards related to education and relevance. However, the standards on cost effectiveness and equity corresponding to education, research, and service were significantly insufficient. As a result of classification using a logic model, many criteria were incorporated into the process, producing results similar to those of international accreditation institutions. Therefore, to fulfill medical schools' social accountability, it is necessary to develop cost effectiveness and equity standards with reference to grid models and expand them beyond education to include research and service areas. Developing content and outcome standards is also required.