Data On Hospital Bills For Common Illnesses

29 Sep 2003

Data on Hospital Bills for Common Illnesses

From today, the Ministry of Health is publishing on its website statistics on hospital bills for the top common illnesses.

Purpose

This will allow patients and their family doctors to know at the click of a mouse the bill size of treatment for patients of similar medical condition at different hospitals and in different ward classes. With such information, GPs can help their patients make better informed choices on where to seek treatment. Hospitals will also be able to compare their cost with that of their counterparts and in so doing, learn to stay competitive while providing good quality care to their patients.

Data Source

The data are based on actual bills submitted by the hospitals over the preceding 12 months i.e. from 1st Sep 02 to 31st Aug 03. The bill size data take into account the severity of the patient's condition and include all charges for the episode, such as doctors' professional fees, hospitalisation fees, implants, drugs, laboratory tests and diagnostic procedures. The data will be updated monthly as new data are processed, based on 12-month moving averages.

Common Conditions

The data are for the 28 common illnesses or medical procedures handled in the hospitals. Together, they account for a third of all admissions to hospitals. The plan is to expand the list progressively to cover other common conditions. The next target is to enlarge it to the top 50 illnesses which account for about half of all admissions.

Public Hospitals

The data cover all public hospitals. Data from private hospitals are currently incomplete, but we expect to be able to include and publish their data before year end.

Key Statistics

The published statistics include (a) the average length of stay, (b) the 50th percentile bill size ie the median bill size, (c) the 90th percentile bill size, and (d) the number of cases handled by the respective hospital in the preceding 12 months. Where the patient volume for a particular condition is less than 30 cases for that particular ward class, the statistics for that hospital will not be displayed.

Website

Visitors just have to click on the icon "Hospital Bill Size" on the website www.moh.gov.sg to access the data. A list of the 28 illnesses or procedures is attached at Annex.

Joint Initiative with CASE

This is a joint initiative with the Consumers Association of Singapore.

29 September 2003

Ministry of Health

Annex

Top Common Illnesses/Procedures

No. Illness/Procedure

1 Appendix surgery (appendicectomy)

2 Asthma

3 Breast lump removal

4 Carpal tunnel release surgery

5 Cataract surgery (phacoemulsification)

6 Colonscopy

7 Cellulitis (Skin Infection)

8 Coronary angioplasty

9 Delivery (Caesarean)

10 Delivery (Normal)

11 Ear infection (middle ear)

12 Epilepsy

13 Gallbladder removal surgery (laparoscopic)

14 Gastroneteritis (diarrhoea)

15 Gastroscopy

16 Glaucoma surgery

17 Haemorrhoid surgery (haemorrhoidectomy)

18 Heart surgery (Coronary artery bypass graft)

19 Hernia repair (inguinal)

20 Kidney & urinary tract infections

21 Knee replacement surgery

22 Myopia surgery (LASIK)

23 Pneumonia

24 Prostate operation

25 Sleep Apnoea

26 Stroke

27 Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy

28 Urinary stones with Lithotripsy