title: [Hospitalisation Rates and Duration of Hospital Stays of Patients from an Ambulatory Health Centre Compared to Traditional General Practices - A Practical Example].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The reduction of treatment costs in the health-care system is a great challenge for all participating persons and institutions in Germany. In particular, we notice an evident increase in the costs of hospitalisation treatment in the last 20 years. The reduction of a further increase in stationary treatment costs by reducing the hospitalisation rate and the duration of stationary treatment as managed by cooperation of general practitioners and medical specialists could be an important possibility.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Is it possible to reduce the hospitalisation rate and the duration of the hospital treatment by cooperation of general practitioners and internal specialists in an ambulatory health centre?
  
  
  METHODS
  The hospitalisation rate and the average duration of the stationary treatment of the "Praxisgemeinschaft" (PG) of the "Gesundheitscentrum Damme" (GCD) at the local hospital were retrospectively analysed for the years 2002 up to 2011 and compared with the data of the remaining general practitioner offices and the data of the "Deutsche Krankenhausstatistik" (German Hospital statistics).
  
  
  RESULTS
  We did indeed find a slight increase for the hospitalisation rate from 0.012 to 0.019% of all the ambulant treated patient cases of the PG; but this increase was statistically significantly lower compared with the results of the remaining practitioner offices of the local area as well the data of the "Deutsche Krankenhausstatistik". Similarly, the duration of hospital treatment for the patients of the PG could be significantly more reduced from 10.80 to 6.49 days compared to the results of the 2 other above-mentioned groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Both the hospitalisation rate as well as the duration of hospital treatment can significantly reduced by cooperation of general practitioner and internal specialist in an ambulatory health centre.
authors.affiliation: Gesundheitscentrum Damme, Damme.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Woebkenberg
authors.affiliation: Institut für Allgemeinmedizin, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Schneider
mesh_terms: D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends; D058006:General Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends