Graduate Medical EducationNCT01303263
A Brief Intervention to Improve Cost-effective Resource Use Among Medicine Housestaff
A study testing Educational Intervention in people with Graduate Medical Education and Cost-Effectiveness, run by Brigham and Women's Hospital at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
OBJECTIVE: To test a brief intervention designed to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by medicine housestaff for hospitalized patients. HYPOTHESIS: A brief intervention in which medicine residents receive itemized bills for recent patients cared for by them, followed by a discussion on approaches to… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Any age
- Conditions the study is for
- Graduate Medical Education, Cost-Effectiveness
- What is being tested?
- Educational Intervention
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 96 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- Sep 2009to Feb 2011
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages Any age
- All sexes
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Internal Medicine Residents on Inpatient Rotations at Brigham \& Women's Hospital
Who cannot join
- Having a team member who was in either the control group or intervention group in a prior round of this study.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Brigham & Women's Hospital
Boston, Massachusetts, 02115
About this study
OBJECTIVE: To test a brief intervention designed to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by medicine housestaff for hospitalized patients.
HYPOTHESIS: A brief intervention in which medicine residents receive itemized bills for recent patients cared for by them, followed by a discussion on approaches to reducing unnecessary inpatient costs, can result in significant cost reductions without adversely affecting patient outcomes.
Read the detailed description
We designed a brief educational intervention with two primary objectives: 1) to increase awareness among residents about how their decisions impact the costs of inpatient medical care; and 2) to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by residents without adversely affecting patient outcomes. We hypothesized that a brief intervention in which residents receive bills for patients they recently cared for, followed by a discussion on approaches to reducing unnecessary inpatient costs, would reduce costs without adversely affecting patient outcomes.
- Conditions
- Graduate Medical Education, Cost-Effectiveness
- Being tested
- Educational Intervention
- Keywords
- efficiency, cost-awareness, hospitals, graduate medical education
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Educational InterventionBehavioural
45-minute teaching session on healthcare costs, in which each resident reviewed an itemized hospital bill for a patient he/she had cared for, followed by an open-ended discussion about reducing unnecessary costs.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Intervention Group | Other | Residents Randomized to Receive Educational Intervention Receives: Behavioral: Educational Intervention |
| Control Group | No intervention | Residents randomized not to receive a teaching intervention. |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Total Cost
Total hospital cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Measured: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Lab Cost
Total lab cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Measured: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Pharmacy Cost
Total pharmacy cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Measured: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Radiology Cost
Total radiology cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Measured: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Secondary outcomes (4)
length of stay
Measured: 2 weeks after educational intervention
admission to an intensive care unit (ICU)
Measured: 2 weeks after educational intervention
30-day readmission
Measured: within 30 days after end of study period
30-day mortality
Measured: within 30 days after end of study period
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted24 Feb 2011 (estimated)
- Study startSep 2009
- Primary completionDec 2010
- Study completionFeb 2011
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Graduate Medical EducationStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Brigham and Women's HospitalThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Enrolment
- 96 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Partners Center of Expertise in Quality and Patient Safety
- Investigators
- David Bates, MD, Principal investigator, Brigham and Women's HospitalBenjamin D Sommers, MD, PhD, Study director, Brigham and Women's Hospital
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT01303263
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 2009-P-001758/1; BWH
- Status last verified
- Feb 2011
- First submitted
- 23 Feb 2011
- Last updated
- 22 Jun 2011
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 22 Jun 2011. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Brief Intervention to Improve Cost-effective Resource Use Among Medicine Housestaff
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT01303263
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 2009-P-001758/1; BWH
- Conditions
- Graduate Medical Education, Cost-Effectiveness
- Keywords
- efficiency, cost-awareness, hospitals, graduate medical education
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 96 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Brigham and Women's HospitalUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Partners Center of Expertise in Quality and Patient Safety
- Study start
- Sep 2009
- Primary completion
- Dec 2010 (actual)
- Study completion
- Feb 2011 (actual)
- First posted
- 24 Feb 2011 (estimated)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
OBJECTIVE: To test a brief intervention designed to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by medicine housestaff for hospitalized patients.
HYPOTHESIS: A brief intervention in which medicine residents receive itemized bills for recent patients cared for by them, followed by a discussion on approaches to reducing unnecessary inpatient costs, can result in significant cost reductions without adversely affecting patient outcomes.
Detailed description
We designed a brief educational intervention with two primary objectives: 1) to increase awareness among residents about how their decisions impact the costs of inpatient medical care; and 2) to improve the cost-effectiveness of care provided by residents without adversely affecting patient outcomes. We hypothesized that a brief intervention in which residents receive bills for patients they recently cared for, followed by a discussion on approaches to reducing unnecessary inpatient costs, would reduce costs without adversely affecting patient outcomes.
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Intervention Group | Other | Behavioral: Educational InterventionResidents Randomized to Receive Educational Intervention |
| Control Group | No intervention | –Residents randomized not to receive a teaching intervention. |
Who may qualify
- Sex
- All
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Internal Medicine Residents on Inpatient Rotations at Brigham \& Women's Hospital
Key exclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Having a team member who was in either the control group or intervention group in a prior round of this study.
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Educational Intervention45-minute teaching session on healthcare costs, in which each resident reviewed an itemized hospital bill for a patient he/she had cared for, followed by an open-ended discussion about reducing unnecessary costs. | Behavioural | Intervention Group |
Primary outcome
Total Cost
Time frame: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Total hospital cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Lab Cost
Time frame: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Total lab cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Pharmacy Cost
Time frame: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Total pharmacy cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
Radiology Cost
Time frame: 2 weeks following educational intervention
Total radiology cost per admission for 2 weeks following the educational intervention.
4 secondary outcomes
length of stay
Time frame: 2 weeks after educational intervention
admission to an intensive care unit (ICU)
Time frame: 2 weeks after educational intervention
30-day readmission
Time frame: within 30 days after end of study period
30-day mortality
Time frame: within 30 days after end of study period
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 22 Jun 2011.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
David Bates, MD principal investigator
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Benjamin D Sommers, MD, PhD study director
Brigham and Women's Hospital
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Educational Intervention in people with Graduate Medical Education and Cost-Effectiveness, run by Brigham and Women's Hospital at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 22 Jun 2011. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Total Cost (time frame: 2 weeks following educational intervention). The study lists 4 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 22 Jun 2011.