Abstract
BackgroundThe Republic of Ireland (ROI) is a low incidence TB country. The last reform of TB services in the ROI in 2003 recommended that most TB management should be delivered on an outpatient basis with 3 hospitals being designated as TB centres. Our aim was to describe the utilization of hospital inpatient care by patients with TB in the Republic of Ireland.MethodsHospital coding data were searched to identify TB hospital discharges between 01/01/2015-31/12/18. The projected cost of TB episodes of care was calculated using payment rules for public hospitals in Ireland.Results1185 admissions with TB as the principal diagnosis were identified. 801/1185 (68%) episodes of care were emergencies and 384/1185 (32%) were elective We estimate that 65.1% (818/1257) patients with TB notified in the Republic of Ireland from 2015-2018 had an episode of care in a public hospital and (50.8%) 639/818 had an emergency episode of care. We estimate that mean annual cost of TB inpatient care per year in the ROI from 2015-2018 was €2,638,828 - 2,955,047, with emergency episodes of care costing an average of €2,250,926 - 2,557,397 per year.ConclusionThe burden of TB on hospital inpatient care in the Republic of Ireland is significant.The national TB policy should change in recognition of this.Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures
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