Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 407: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children her views on the criteria used for the recent allocation of finance to hospitals on the grounds of efficiency; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1719/06]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Casemix is an internationally accepted evidence-based management system used for the monitoring and evaluation of health services. It allows for the collection, categorisation and interpretation of hospital patient data related to the types of cases treated to assist hospitals in defining their products, measuring their productivity and assessing their quality. Casemix is used for many purposes related to hospital and health service management as it provides the only audited national dataset of patient related information necessary for national planning. With regard to using casemix as part of the budgetary process, this is done so that hospitals are fully funded for the patients they actually treat at a cost per case set by their peers.

The system reviews each patient treated, having regard to their age, sex, diagnoses, procedures, length of stay, mode of discharge, etc. and calculates a cost per case for each patient generated by their peers. The programme allows each hospital to take full account of their unique patients and unique issues. The entire process takes place in consultation with each hospital placing patient-centred information at the heart of the process.

The casemix allocations recently released are a result of a review of 2004 activity and costs in 37 hospitals nationally. Some 30% of the budget for inpatients and day cases was peer group performance related, an increase of 20% on the previous year. This is set to increase to 40% next year and 50% the following year. A small adjustment, 2.5%, with regard to accident and emergency cases was also included.

I am committed to performance related targets and casemix is the most internationally accepted performance related acute hospital activity programme. It has been agreed between my Department and the Health Service Executive that casemix will be used as a central pillar in all acute hospital funding policy.