Treatment Outcome of 4 to 7 Years-Old Patients with Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate in Tawanchai Center, Srinagarind Hospital: Charge Cost
Lekbunyasin O, MBA1, Chantachume V, BSc1, Pradubwong S, MSN2, Chowchuen B, MD, MBA3
Affiliation : 1 Department of Medical Records and Statistics, Srinagarind Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand 2 Division of Nursing, Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand 3 Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Background : According to the protocol established by the interdisciplinary team, patients with cleft lip and cleft palate (CLP) need
to undergo surgery in order to experience to good treatment outcomes. However, some medical expenses are incurred during this
process.
Objective : To examine the costs related to surgery as compared to the compensation received according to the diagnosis related
groups (DRG).
Materials and Methods : A descriptive study was conducted using the medical records of the patients with CLP, who had received
treatment at the Tawanchai Center (KKU Cleft Center). The data was collected for 3 months and included general information, the
details of the surgery, and the costs. Afterwards, the collected data was analyzed using percentages, means and standard deviations.
Results : It was found that there were 93 patients had undergone the surgery, and 56 of them had been males (60.22%). The number
of patients (percent) receiving Cheiloplasty, Palatoplasty, cleft lip and nose correction, and closure fistula had been 93 patients
(100%), 90 patients (100%), 24 patients (25.81%), and 15 patients (16.13%), respectively. Each of the treatments had average costs
at 12,515 baht, 16,229 baht, 14,895 baht and 20,315 baht, respectively. Fifty four patients, which was considered as the highest
number, had undergone the surgery twice (58.06%) and 1 patient had undergone the surgery 6 times, which indicated the highest
frequency (1.08%). The costs of the surgery were compared with the allocated financial support (84.56%) according to DRG. The
payment rate was 9,000 baht per 1 relative weight (AdjRW).
Conclusion : The average costs of a closure fistula procedure were higher than the average costs of Cheiloplasty and Palatoplasty.
84.56 percent of the patients had been allocated with financial support according to DRG. The proper payment rate was 10,643 baht
per 1 AdjRW.
Keywords : Tawanchai Center (KKU Cleft Center) cleft lip and cleft palate, Diagnosis related groups (DRG), Adjust relative weight (AdjRW)
