Table 1. Descriptive Statistics of Hospitalized Patient Characteristics and Outcome Variables Before, During, and After Implementation of DRGsa.
| Characteristic | Patients, No. (%) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Before DRGs (n = 2 187 767) | During DRGs (n = 2 718 599) | After DRGs (n = 2 698 024) | |
| Age, mean (SD), y | 69.04 (13.12) | 68.98 (13.25) | 68.88 (13.22) |
| Sex | |||
| Female | 1 032 608 (47.20) | 1 298 531 (47.76) | 1 306 418 (48.42) |
| Male | 1 155 159 (52.82) | 1 420 068 (52.24) | 1 391 606 (51.58) |
| Received social security assistance | 538 053 (24.59) | 634 139 (23.33) | 588 260 (21.78) |
| Lived in elder care residence | 280 482 (12.82) | 330 127 (12.14) | 296 138 (10.98) |
| Household income, median (SD), HKD 1000b | 18.01 (3.64) | 20.81 (5.20) | 27.51 (5.28) |
| Charlson comorbidity index score, mean (SD) | 1.99 (0.92) | 2.04 (0.87) | 2.10 (0.86) |
| Outcome variables | |||
| Length of stay, mean (SD), d | 3.79 (4.62) | 3.34 (4.31) | 3.22 (4.24) |
| Hospital admissions, mean (SD), per 1000 residents per month | 24.62 (17.73) | 27.71 (19.65) | 26.32 (19.06) |
| In-hospital deaths | 66 889 (3.06) | 72 054 (2.65) | 66 224 (2.45) |
| 1-mo Emergency readmissions | 269 008 (12.33) | 333 081 (12.25) | 316 761 (11.74) |
Abbreviation: DRGs, diagnosis-related groups.
a
The period of study before the introduction of DRGs was April 2006 to March 2009; during implementation, April 2009 to March 2012; and after discontinuation, April 2012 to November 2014.
b
1 HKD is equal to 0.13 USD.