Private Costs of Patients Hospitalized with Community-Acquired Pneumonia. Issue 4 (3rd June 2005)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jacobs, Philip; Marrie, Thomas J; Calder, Peter
• Is Part Of: Canadian respiratory journal. Volume 12:Issue 4(2005)
• Page Start: 205
• Page End: 208
• Publication Date: 2005-06-03
• Subjects: Cost -- Hospitalization -- Pneumonia; Respiratory organs -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Respiration -- Canada -- Periodicals; Respiration; Respiratory organs -- Diseases; Canada; Respiratory Tract Diseases -- Periodicals; Periodicals; Periodicals; 616.2
• DOI: 10.1155/2005/905970
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1198-2241

Abstract

Abstract : BACKGROUND: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a condition which frequently requires hospitalization and consequently, can result in high costs. Little is known of the additional personal resources that are used by patients hospitalized for CAP. OBJECTIVE: To measure the private costs for persons who were hospitalized with CAP for the 30 days after being admitted to hospital using a systematic method of measurement. METHODS: Potential personal cost items were identified by nurses familiar with the treatment of CAP and categorized. Using telephone interviews in conjunction with the cost-identification framework, 60 patients from the Edmonton, Alberta area were surveyed for their private costs associated with CAP for 30 days after admission to hospital. RESULTS: Of the 60 patients surveyed, 49 were older than 65 years of age. The mean private cost was $505, which amounted to 5.6% of the total societal costs of $8, 970. The distribution was skewed with a small number of patients that had high costs. CONCLUSIONS: This method allows the determination of the societal costs for patients hospitalized with pneumonia, and the costs were not much greater than those to the health care system.