Wisconsin hospitals’ efforts to improve the quality and safety of the patient care have reduced health care costs in Wisconsin by an estimated $45.6 million, according to a 2013 Quality Report released by the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA).
More than 100 hospitals working together with WHA have reduced readmissions, prevented hospital-associated infections and adverse events related to insulin, and reduced the number of babies delivered before 39 weeks.
One of the most dramatic decreases was in the number of patients readmitted to the hospital after an inpatient stay. The average readmission costs $9,600. The hospitals that are working on this have already prevented 3,556 readmissions and reduced health care costs in Wisconsin by about $34 million.