Cs. Kelly et al., Outcomes evaluation of a comprehensive intervention program for asthmatic children enrolled in Medicaid, PEDIATRICS, 105(5), 2000, pp. 1029-1035
Objectives. To evaluate health care and financial outcomes in a population
of Medicaid-insured asthmatic children after a comprehensive asthma interve
ntion program.
Design. Controlled clinical trial.
Setting. Pediatric allergy clinic in an urban, tertiary care children's hos
pital.
Subjects. Eighty children, 2 to 16 years old, with a history of frequent us
e of emergent health care services for asthma.
Intervention. Children in the intervention group received asthma education
and medical treatment in the setting of a tertiary care pediatric allergy c
linic. An asthma outreach nurse maintained monthly contact with the familie
s enrolled in the intervention group.
Outcome Measures. Emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalizations, and h
ealth care charges per patient in the year after enrollment.
Results. Baseline demographics did not differ significantly between the 2 g
roups. In the year before the study, there were no significant differences
between intervention and control children in ED visits (mean, 3.5 per patie
nt), hospitalizations (mean, .6 per patient) or health care charges ($2969
per patient). During the study year, ED visits decreased to a mean of 1.7 p
er patient in the intervention group and 2.4 in controls, while hospitaliza
tions decreased to a mean of .2 per patient in the intervention group and .
5 in the controls. Average asthma health care charges decreased by $721/chi
ld/year in the intervention group and by $178/patient/year in the control g
roup.
Conclusions. A comprehensive asthma intervention program for Medicaid-insur
ed asthmatic children can significantly improve health outcomes while reduc
ing health care costs.