Providing Value-Based Regional Anesthesia: It’s a Matter of Angles

 

The value of the services that anesthesiologists provide is being examined more closely than ever. Indeed, determining the true value of regional anesthesia can only be done within the context of its many costs, most of which are not monetary.

“‘Value’ is the name of the game in medicine these days,” said Brian E. Harrington, MD, staff anesthesiologist at Billings Clinic Hospital, in Billings, Mont. “Yet I don’t think a lot of anesthesiologists have a great understanding of the concept of value and how we can impact it,” he said during the 21st Annual Jefferson Anesthesia Conference.

Value = Benefit/Cost

“Many anesthesiologists limit their perception of the value of regional anesthesia to its benefits: less pain, faster rehabilitation and better patient satisfaction,” Dr. Harrington said. “But value is actually benefit per cost.”

More...