A Brief Intervention to Improve Cost-effective Resource Use Among Medicine Housestaff

Cost-Effectiveness Clinical Trial

Official title: A Brief Intervention to Improve Cost-effective Resource Use Among Medicine Housestaff

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

OBJECTIVE: To test a brief intervention designed to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by medicine housestaff for hospitalized patients.

HYPOTHESIS: A brief intervention in which medicine residents receive itemized bills for recent patients cared for by them, followed by a discussion on approaches to reducing unnecessary inpatient costs, can result in significant cost reductions without adversely affecting patient outcomes.

Clinical Trial Description

We designed a brief educational intervention with two primary objectives: 1) to increase awareness among residents about how their decisions impact the costs of inpatient medical care; and 2) to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by residents without adversely affecting patient outcomes. We hypothesized that a brief intervention in which residents receive bills for patients they recently cared for, followed by a discussion on approaches to reducing unnecessary inpatient costs, would reduce costs without adversely affecting patient outcomes. ;

Study Design

Allocation: Randomized

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Cost-Effectiveness
• Graduate Medical Education

• NCT number: NCT01303263
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Brigham and Women's Hospital
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: September 2009
• Completion date: February 2011