[Outpatient orthopaedic rehabilitation: treatment, outcomes and costs as compared to inpatient rehabilitation]

Abstract

In a parallel design the study examined an outpatient rehabilitation model project for patients of the pension insurance scheme of Rhineland-Palatinate (LVA Rheinland-Pfalz). In 6 centers for the rehabilitation of musculoskeletal diseases patients were assessed at the beginning and at the end of rehabilitation as well as six and twelve months after discharge. In this article the final results concerning therapeutic measures as well as health-related and economic outcomes are presented. Not included are aspects of differential utilization and the perception of the rehabilitation by the clients, which will be published in a separate article. No large differences were found concerning participation in the various therapeutic measures. As measured by the main score and the sub-dimensions of the IRES patient questionnaire, effects of the same magnitude were found for the parallelized samples. Equally, no differences in outcome quality were found concerning the great majority of medical parameters documented in a doctors' questionnaire, the rate of applications for pension, occupational status twelve months after rehabilitation, as well as the reduction of sick-leave. The economic evaluation was carried out only from the perspective of the pension insurance agency. Considerable differences were found in the net costs of rehabilitation: although there are no user charges for patients in outpatient rehabilitation, mean expenditure was about 970 EURO lower than in inpatient rehabilitation. The study findings demonstrate that the concept of interdisciplinary rehabilitation has been realized in the outpatient centers as well and that the centers have reached an effectiveness comparable to that of inpatient rehabilitation. At least those patients who actively choose the outpatient setting gain as much as patients in inpatient rehabilitation.