Cost analysis of treating pain patients on the example of the Clinical accident ward Of university Clinical Centre in Gdańsk

Abstract

The cost analysis of pain treatment is not a topic often taken up by the health economists community. The subjective dimension and pain assessment by the patient is one of the main determinants of the lack of interest in this topic. Work carried out on this topic currently includes analysis accompanying the process of pharmacotherapy treatment, care provided by medical personnel as well as costs resulting from administrative services. The aim of the work is to present the cost analysis of care for a „pain” patient and to indicate the most optimal financial package of these activities. The study was performed on the basis of financial data of the Clinical Emergency Department of the University Clinical Center in Gdańsk for the last year. We analyzed the cases of patients complaining of pain who received pharmacotherapy. Results The total cost for 2017 amounted to 1.128.668 PLN. The largest amount of money was allocated to the group of patients qualified to the group R: „Symptoms, disease features and abnormal results of clinical trials not classified elsewhere” – 327.313.72 PLN. The symptom of pain is one of the most frequently indicated symptoms among patients who receive medical help at the Clinical Emergency Department of the University Clinical Center in Gdańsk, which should be associated with a greater degree of involvement in analgesic therapy in patients who require it.