Pressure ulcers in German hospitals: Analysis of reimbursement and length of stay

Abstract

Hospital-acquired pressure ulcers are an important indicator of the quality of care. Most pressure ulcers are avoidable with a robust protocol for prevention, but prevention activities often have a low priority for senior management because the true costs to the hospital are not visible. Our aim was to raise awareness of the value of pressure ulcer prevention by estimating the excess length of inpatient stay associated with hospital-acquired pressure ulcers, and by assessing whether additional costs are covered by increased reimbursement.

Keywords

• germany
• pressure ulcer
• hospital-acquired
• length of stay
• reimbursement
• g-drg