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July 24, 2015
For the first time, the cost to the NHS of severely bleeding trauma patients has been quantified in a new detailed study. The study found that an estimated 7780 cases present in England annually with associated treatment costs of £148.3 million. The research was a collaboration between C4TS, the Royal London Hospital, Oxford University, NHS Blood and Transplant, and TARN (the independent monitor of trauma care in England and Wales). It was funded by an NIHR Programme Grant for Applied Research.
Detailed data on hospital treatment and care provided to 441 severely bleeding trauma patients arriving at 22 hospitals in England and Wales was collected and costed.
C4TS collaborator Helen Campbell explains the significance of the study:
“We now know the total high cost of treatment and we can also identify the more costly elements of care, these being ventilation, intensive care and ward stay, surgery, and blood product transfusions. Using the data from this study, NHS managers will now be able to make projections about future care costs: for example in light of an aging population or perhaps by implementing initiatives to reduce blood wastage.”
“Additional research is needed to record and cost the care these patients need after hospital discharge. Research from the USA suggests these costs too are high and will mean that the true cost to the NHS of treating severely bleeding trauma patients is likely to be even greater than the figure reported here.”
The full study can be found here.
