Inpatient Utilization of Computed Tomography: the Influence of Market, Hospital, and Patient Characteristics
Abstract
The use of computed tomography (CT) in the care of patients has grown dramatically since its introduction over 30 years ago. The vast majority of the utilization research has focused on factors associated with the variable use in the outpatient and emergency department settings. This has left much of the inpatient use and variation understudied. This study has multiple aims. The first is to characterize the inpatient variation across multiple states and markets. The second is to evaluate the relationship between inpatient CT use and commercial payers across these areas. The third is to develop a model to evaluate the relationship between inpatient CT use and the characteristics of markets, hospitals, and patients. The study uses a four-state convenience sample of cross-sectional data for hospitals. It included non-Federal, acute care hospitals that reported the performance of inpatient CT exams during 2015 (N=181). The literature review was used to justify the inclusion of variables in the study. The descriptive analyses were used to justify the appropriateness of the variables and methodology for testing. A comparison of means demonstrated the significant differences for inpatient utilization between states. A univariate general linear model demonstrated a negative relationship with a hospital’s proportion of commercially insured patients and the inpatient utilization rate. An ordinary least squares multivariate linear regression was used to test for variable significance…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a cross-sectional, done in people. Its evidence level is 4 of 5 (Low · observational). Observational designs can show an association but not prove cause. Reported size: 181 participants or records.
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