The Knowledge of Medical Professionals from Selected Hospitals in the Lubelskie Province about Diagnosis-Related Groups Systems

Abstract

Health information technology (IT) in hospitals can be approached as a tool to reduce health care costs and improve hospital efficiency and profitability, increase the quality of healthcare services, and make the transition to patient-centered healthcare. A hospital’s efficiency and profitability depends on linking IT with the knowledge and motivation of medical personnel. It is important to design and execute a knowledge management strategy as a part of the implementation of IT in hospital management. A Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRG) system was introduced in Poland in 2008 as a basis for settlements between hospitals and the National Health Fund (NHF). The importance and role of a DRG system in management of healthcare entities was emphasized based on a survey of medical professionals from two hospitals in the Lubelskie province. The goal of a survey is to assess the knowledge of medical professionals about the DRG system and how the medical personnel uses the DRG system in order to achieve the strategic goals of the organization. A newly developed survey was used to assess the medical personnel’s knowledge of DRG, using 12 closed and 5 open questions. The survey was conducted on 160 medical employees from two hospitals in the Lubelskie province. In conclusion, medical personnel’s DRG knowledge unambiguously contributes to reducing hospital costs and increasing profitability. The DRG related knowledge enables personnel to obtain value from data by applying DRG data-driven decisions.