California
Association
for
Medical Laboratory Technology
Distance Learning Program
|
Cost Effective Clinical Microbiology Course
Number: DL-984 © California Association
for Medical Laboratory Technology. CAMLT is approved by the California Department
of Health Services as a 1895 Mowry Ave, Suite 112 Notification of Distance Learning Deadline |
| This course is configured to be completed on-line. You can register
for the course, submit secure payment using a credit card via PayPal,
take the quiz on-line and receive your graded score.
If you pass, your certificate will be mailed to you from
the CAMLT office. If you fail, you must submit new payment and obtain a new PayPal receipt each time you take the test. A certificate will be issued only if you have paid for re-taking the course and you pass the test. If you want to submit your registration and quiz via fax or mail you should print the Adobe Acrobat version of the course which includes the required Registration/Quiz form. |
| Links to: On-line REGISTRATION, PAYMENT and QUIZ Printable Acrobat version of this course * Other Distance Learning Courses |
|
Cost Effective Clinical Microbiology
Only the Outline, Objectives and Introduction for the course appear on this page. Full Text, References, Questions and Answer Sheet are available by downloading the Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) version of the course using the link above. The downloaded course file may be viewed or printed. Course credit may be obtained by submitting your answers to the questions with payment to CAMLT and obtaining a passing grade (70% or better). Quiz answers and payment may be submitted using the Online Registration link above or by Faxing or Mailing the answer sheet with payment to the CAMLT office in Fremont, CA.
Outline
I. Introduction
II. History
III. Where cost savings can be implemented
IV. Factors related to patient testing
V. Factors related to laboratory technical operations
VI. Factors related to laboratory management operations
VII. Conclusions
VIII. References
IX. Tables
X. Questions
Objectives
After completing this course the participant will be able to:
1. Discuss the role of laboratory expenditures in the cost of health care.
2. Outline the history of cost-based reimbursement during the fee-for-service
era.
3. Explain how the laboratory can control cost.
4. Outline methods to control cost in the microbiology laboratory.
5. Explain laboratory technical operation methods to control cost.
6. State obstacles and methods to deal with test ordering practices.
7. Identify the laboratory management operations methods to help control cost.
I. INTRODUCTION
It has been well known for some time that the United
States spends more per capita on health care than other countries. What may
be less well known is that the United States has had one of the highest increases
in per capita health care spending since 1980 among higher income countries
(1). Health care spending around the world generally is rising at a faster rate
than overall economic growth, so almost all countries have seen health care
spending increase as a percentage of their gross domestic product (GDP). In
the United States, which has had both a high level of health spending per capita
and a relatively high rate of real growth, the share of GDP devoted to health
grew from 8.8% of GDP in 1980 to 16 % of GDP today (1). This 7.2% increase in
the health share of GDP is larger than increases seen in other high-income countries.
Total U.S. spending for health care was $2.16 trillion in 2006, or $7,110 per
person. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has projected U.S.
health care expenditures to reach $4 trillion in 2015, or 20 percent of GDP.
Per person health spending is projected to increase to $12,320 by the end of
that period (1).
There are a variety of reasons for the current state
of high health care costs in the United States (2, 3). Whether one attributes
the high costs to waste and inefficiency, inflated prices, poor management,
inappropriate care, or over-consumption, the cost is too high. Many economists
and health policy analysts argue that new medical technology (new drugs, devices,
treatments, and techniques) is responsible for a substantial portion of the
growth in health expenditures. The cost of health care has exceeded what the
public is willing to pay, especially in view of the growing realization or perception
that increased expenditures have only marginally improved the health in our
country. See Table 1, “U.S. Health Care Facts.”
This distance learning course addresses one specific
aspect of health care spending: clinical microbiology laboratory tests and the
costs associated with them. This course explains how clinical microbiology laboratory
costs affect patients, institutions, and the health care system, and offers
suggestions for how we in the clinical microbiology laboratory can reduce our
costs.