At the
micro level the costs of service units are calculated based on what a unit of
service “should cost.” Time and motion studies are performed to determine
inputs and the processes that go into producing the service unit. This is the
ideal cost. People are seldom ideal.
At the
macro level the actual monies spent are allocated down the hierarchy of
divisions and departments until the final allocation is made to the service unit
produced. This is the real cost.
People spend what they have available to spend.
The
two costs rarely match.
Too many
of the existing “systems” have examined costs from only one side of this
two-way flow. It is only through the matching of these two costs can the
economic system that produce this service unit be strengthened. It is only by
working from “both ends” and by working with the variances in this cost data
that enables management decisions to be made more effectively and efficiently.
This requires an on-going evaluation system.
The
objectives of this program will address these issues of health care quality by
developing management information systems
(MIS) and decision-support systems (DSS). These systems will be used to
improve the effectiveness, efficiency and quality of health care at all levels
of service
The
only way to get true cost is by continuously monitoring with an
Information evaluation system. It is the only way a true cost-benefit analysis
can be made.