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HRD-85-52 1 (1985-08-08)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabffn0001 and id is 1 raw text is: BY THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL Report To The Congress OF THE UNITED STATES Better Patient Management Practices Could Reduce Length Of Stay In VA Hospitals In fiscal year 1984, the Veterans Administration (VA) spent over $8 billion to provide health care to millions of veterans. This amount could rise sharply in the next two decades as millions more veterans become eligible for free VA health services. VA estimates that if it were to serve all eligible veterans requesting care by the year 2000, it would need an additional $5.9 billion to $24.5 billion in construction funds alone. In conjunction with a consultant team of physicians and nurses, GAO ana- lyzed medical files at seven VA medical centers throughout the country and found that 43 percent of days that medical and surgical patients spent in VA hospitals in fiscal year 1982 could have been avoided. In addition, the GAO Chief Medical Advisor's evaluation of patients at six of these facilities in fiscal year 1984 substantiated the consultant's findings. GAO's review focused on opportunities to reduce lengths of stay through more efficient patient care practices. By reducing lengths of stay in its hospitals, VA could free beds to serve additional veterans. If the expected increase in demand for VA medical care does occur, VA would be in a better position to meet more of the demand with its existing supply of acute care beds. This report contains recommendations for establishing more efficient patient management practices as a key step in achieving reduced length of stay. $7' 1 127603 111GAO/HRD-85-52 AUGUST 8, 1985

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