title: Spinal cord injury/disorder teleconsultation outcome study.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to compare the costs of providing specialty wound care to spinal cord injury/disorder (SCI/D) veterans by teleconsultation and traditional care. A retrospective design was used to conduct this descriptive, correlational study. A convenience sample of 76 SCI/D veterans (2 women, 74 men) met inclusion criteria from a possible 123 subjects. Variables were compared between groups using nonparametric methods (Wilcoxon rank sums and chi-square). There was no significant difference in inpatient admissions or inpatient bed days of care between the two groups. The teleconsultation group had more outpatient encounters (medians 12 vs. 4, p = .007; Wilcoxon statistic = 412.5) and longer inpatient stays (medians 81 vs. 19 days/admission, p = .05; Wilcoxon statistic = 227.0) compared to the traditional care group. There was no significant difference in inpatient cost between the two groups; however, the teleconsultation group had a significantly higher median cost per outpatient encounter ($440 vs. $141, p <.0001; Wilcoxon statistic = 469.0). Although this study only looked at costs directly associated with wound management, continued research exploring the use of teleconsultation in other areas of SCI/D specialty is needed to enhance its application.
authors: Cincinnati Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Spinal Cord Injury/Disorder Clinic, OH, USA. sadie.hughesyoung@va.gov
authors: Sadie
authors: S
authors: Young-Hughes
authors: Loretta A
authors: LA
authors: Simbartl
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015397:Program Evaluation; D019145:Rehabilitation Nursing / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000191:economics / Q000451:nursing* / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D014728:Veterans