COPD pathway cuts costs per case by $900.

Abstract

Mobile (AL) Infirmary Medical Center's clinical pathway for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has cut length of stay from 7.8 days to 5.6 days, and cut costs per case from $4,050 to $3,170, resulting in an annual profit of more than $300,000. One reason for the pathway's high degree of physician buy-in has been case managers' willingness to make changes to the pathway with a minimum of red tape. One early revision to the COPD pathway was the development of specific patient goals for each day of the path. Other revisions included making the pathway a permanent part of the medical record and attaching relevant protocols to the pathway, such as a protocol for oxygen therapy.