Abstract
Introduction: The redesign and reconfiguration of the traditional “face to face” fracture clinic model towards virtual assessment and management of patients has been shown to be safe, cost-effective and associated with high patient satisfaction and patient reported outcome rates. The purpose of this study was to look at the potential financial implications of introducing a national virtual fracture clinic service in Ireland. Methods: A combination of established costings for a virtual fracture clinic pathway at our institution and current available public data was utilised to create a national projection. Results: The introduction of a national TAC service could lead to a reduction of 31.5% of patients attending traditional “face to face” fracture clinic appointments with a further 35% of this cohort being discharged directly representing an overall projected cost saving per annum in excess of €3.3 million. Conclusion: The introduction of a national TAC service would promote patient empowerment without comprising clinical care and could provide significant cost savings and financial benefits for the Irish Public Health System without the need for substantial investment. Keywords: Trauma Assessment Clinic; virtual fracture clinic; health reform;
Highlights
The redesign and reconfiguration of the traditional “face to face” fracture clinic model towards virtual assessment and management of patients has been shown to be safe, cost-effective and associated with high patient satisfaction and patient reported outcome rates
The virtual clinic model is increasingly being adopted by various medical and surgical specialities and has revealed both a safe and cost-effective patient pathway associated with high patient satisfaction rates and patient reported outcomes. [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8] The redesign and reconfiguration of the traditional “face to face” fracture clinic model towards virtual assessment and management of patients has been shown in some studies to equate to a saving of almost 40% in direct costs. [8,9,10,11] While indirect costs are more difficult to accurately determine, some studies have cited approximately €80 per consultation as a cost to society, because of a reduction in productivity, as well as equating to nearly half a day of school lost with regard to paediatric fracture clinic appointments. [12,13,14]
There was a total of 1,832 patients reviewed via the traditional “face to face” fracture clinic at Midlands Regional Hospital Tullamore (MRHT)
Summary
The redesign and reconfiguration of the traditional “face to face” fracture clinic model towards virtual assessment and management of patients has been shown to be safe, cost-effective and associated with high patient satisfaction and patient reported outcome rates. [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8] The redesign and reconfiguration of the traditional “face to face” fracture clinic model towards virtual assessment and management of patients has been shown in some studies to equate to a saving of almost 40% in direct costs. A virtual fracture clinic service, known as the Trauma Assessment Clinic or TAC, was introduced at the Midlands Regional Hospital Tullamore (MRHT) in 2016 and was the first unit to introduce this novel care pathway in the Irish Public Health System.
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