Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Healthcare Performance Dashboard: Analysis Report

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) is a prominent healthcare institution recognized for its comprehensive medical services, research, and educational programs. This report provides an in-depth analysis based on patient data from MGH, focusing on key performance indicators such as patient admissions, readmissions, average costs, and procedural analysis. The data aims to offer insights into hospital performance, cost management, and healthcare disparities.

Dataset Overview

The dataset encompasses patient records over a span of years, capturing details such as patient encounters, costs, length of stay, insurance coverage, and demographic information. Key columns in the dataset include:

• PATIENT: Unique identifier for each patient.
• GENDER, RACE: Demographic details.
• TOTAL_CLAIM_COST: Total cost of patient care.
• LENGTH_OF_STAY: Duration of hospital stay.
• REASONDESCRIPTION: Reason for hospital visit.
• IS_INSURED: Insurance status.
• DATE: Date of patient visit.

Key Findings

1. Patient Statistics

• Total Patients: 793
• Readmitted Patients: 728

The data indicates a high readmission rate, with 728 out of 793 patients having multiple encounters. This suggests potential issues in patient follow-up or quality of care, highlighting the need for targeted interventions to reduce readmissions and improve patient outcomes.

2. Hospital Efficiency Metrics

• Average Length of Stay (Hours): 5.17

The average hospital stay is relatively short, emphasizing a focus on outpatient and emergency care. While this suggests efficiency in managing patient flow, it may also point to a need for enhanced management of more complex inpatient cases to optimize care quality and resource utilization.

3. Cost Analysis

• Average Cost per Visit: $8,306.26

The average cost per visit reflects the diverse range of treatments and procedures provided at MGH. Effective cost management strategies are essential to balance financial demands while maintaining high-quality care.

• Average Cost for Insured Procedures: $7,056.55
• Average Cost for Uninsured Procedures: $9,658.58

Insured patients incur lower costs compared to uninsured patients, indicating financial challenges for those without insurance. This underscores the importance of improving insurance coverage and developing cost-effective care solutions for uninsured patients.

4. Procedures and Conditions Analysis

• Most Expensive Procedures:
  • Myocardial Infarction: $66,397.85
  • Prenatal Initial Visit: $53,649.11
  • Admission to Intensive Care Unit: $53,195.32
  • Cardiac Arrest: $36,166.24
  • Stroke: $23,918.87

High-cost procedures like myocardial infarction and intensive care admissions reflect their complexity and resource intensity, highlighting the need for efficient management and targeted interventions to reduce costs.

• Most Common Conditions:
  • Normal Pregnancy: 5,686 occurrences
  • Hyperlipidemia: 1,916 occurrences
  • Malignant Neoplasm of Breast: 915 occurrences

Common conditions such as normal pregnancy and chronic diseases like hyperlipidemia drive significant patient volume. Efficient management of these conditions can positively impact hospital operations and patient care.

5. Demographic Cost Analysis

• Average Cost per Visit by Gender:
  • Female Patients: $10,106.79
  • Male Patients: $6,214.87

Costs for female patients are higher than for male patients, potentially due to gender-specific healthcare needs. Understanding these differences can aid in tailoring healthcare strategies to meet diverse patient needs effectively.

• Average Cost per Visit by Race:
  • Asian: $7,015.62
  • Black: $9,970.36
  • Hawaiian: $20,685.82
  • Native: $9,919.00
  • Other: $9,510.87
  • White: $7,818.66

Racial disparities in healthcare costs are apparent, with Hawaiian patients experiencing the highest costs. These differences emphasize the need for targeted interventions to address healthcare disparities and promote equitable access and treatment.

• Cost by Age Group:
• 31-50: $21,444.50 (Highest costs suggest extensive healthcare utilization in this age range.)
• 51-70: $5,780.57
• 71-100: $6,053.16

The age group (31-50) is the highest average total claim ($21,444.50), suggesting potentially higher healthcare utilization or more expensive treatments among individuals in this age range.

6. Length of Stay by Condition

• Top 10 Reasons by Average Length of Stay (Hours):
  • Sepsis: 338.56 hours
  • COVID-19: 228.23 hours
  • Appendicitis: 80.39 hours

Conditions such as sepsis and COVID-19 result in longer hospital stays, indicating their severity and the intensive care required. Understanding these conditions can help optimize resource allocation and improve patient care strategies.

7. Trend Analysis of Key Metrics Over Time

• Monthly Admissions and Readmissions:

Admissions and readmissions show fluctuations over time, with notable peaks in certain months such as October 2021 (369 admissions). These trends may reflect seasonal patterns or external factors like pandemics, affecting patient flow and hospital resource management.

• Average Cost per Visit Each Month:

Costs exhibit variability with notable peaks and troughs, such as a high in October 2021 ($15,365.29) and a low in March 2011 ($5,199.06). These fluctuations may be influenced by operational changes, patient demographics, or external events impacting hospital operations.

• Average Length of Stay Each Month:

Analyzing trends in the average length of stay provides insights into hospital efficiency and patient care dynamics, helping to identify opportunities for enhancing operational processes and patient outcomes.

The analysis of MGH’s patient data reveals critical insights into patient care, cost management, and operational efficiency. Key findings include high readmission rates, significant cost disparities by insurance status and demographics, and variations in length of stay for different conditions. Addressing these issues through continuous monitoring and targeted interventions can enhance hospital performance and patient outcomes, ensuring that MGH maintains its high standards of care while managing costs effectively.