Table 4.
Quality-Based Results (High Quality: CONG=1; Medium Quality: CONG<1.04; Low Quality: CONG>1.04)† Environmental Factors and Slack Differentials
| High Quality (n=901) | Medium Quality (n=233) | Low Quality (n=237) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall data envelopment analysis (DEA) efficiency estimate* | 1.30 | 1.43 | 1.44 |
| Organizational and environmental factors | |||
| Total expenditures* | 198,944,690 | 187,362,856 | 106,287,500 |
| High-tech services* | 7.06 | 6.90 | 5.20 |
| Medicare (%)** | 42.05 | 41.87 | 44.40 |
| Occupancy rate* | 66.68 | 66.08 | 59.37 |
| Average length of stay* | 5.31 | 4.88 | 4.88 |
| Cost/admission* | 13,442 | 13,012 | 11,990 |
| Capital/bed* | 50,511 | 51,005 | 50,511 |
| Full-time equivalent (FTE)/bed** | 5.32 | 5.60 | 5.04 |
| Health maintenance organization (HMO) (%)** | 25.46 | 22.38 | 23.67 |
| Herfindahl–Hirschman index (HHI)* | 0.30 | 0.36 | 0.43 |
| Slack differentials | |||
| Bassinets*** | 6.26 | 5.99 | 5.99 |
| FTE registered nurses (RNs) | 0.09 | 2.28 | −2.88 |
| FTE licensed practical nurses (LPNs)**** | −0.82 | 3.35 | −1.35 |
| FTE other personnel** | 4.74 | 13.02 | −40.71 |
| FTE interns/residents | 1.12 | 1.06 | −6.26 |
| Other beds**** | −0.22 | −0.0001 | 0.52 |
| Acute beds*** | −0.03 | −0.54 | 0.51 |
| Congestion (%)* | 1.00 | 1.02 | 1.16 |
*
p<.001.
**
p<.01.
***
p<.05.
****
p<.10.
†
A congestion score of 1 indicates no congestion (i.e., bads crowding out goods). The cut-off between medium and low levels of CONG is 1.04, which is the number of hospitals between the mean and the 50th percentile of the congestion score (medium) and above the 50th percentile (low).