Wound care costs in general practice - a cross-sectional study
Whitlock, E.; Morcom, J.; Spurling, G.; Janamian, T.; Ryan, S.
Australian Family Physician 43(3): 143-146
2014
ISSN/ISBN: 0300-8495 PMID: 24600678 Document Number: 673532
The management of wounds presents a significant burden to healthcare services, consuming a large amount of resources. This study aimed to determine the cost of wound care in general practice by conducting an audit of current wound management practices. Eighteen general practices collected data on wound care episodes over a period of 14 days during December 2011. For most of the 332 wound care episodes, the total cost was greater than the total income, resulting in a net loss to the practice. General practitioner care was the greatest contributor to the total cost and the overwhelming majority of income was from Medicare Benefits Schedule billing items. In most cases, general practices are not recouping the costs of wound care. There is a need for policy makers and general practices to review wound care funding and practices to ensure equitable best practice care is being provided.