PROM-based monitoring and alerts reduce post-surgery healthcare utilization of patients undergoing joint replacement: A secondary analysis of the PROMoting Quality RCT.

Objectives: Healthcare systems increasingly face shortages of medical professionals, and simultaneously experience a rise in demand for healthcare services. In this study, we investigated whether a digital PROM-based monitoring and alert system for hip and knee replacement patients post-surgery can support in decreasing healthcare expenditures and utilization.

Methods: We used data from the randomized controlled trial PROMoting Quality, focusing on 546 hip and 492 knee replacement patients from nine German hospitals between October 2019 and December 2020 with available claims data. Patients were equally randomized into two groups: one receiving a PROM-based intervention at 1, 3, and 6 months post-surgery, the other receiving standard care. We compared 1-year post-surgery healthcare utilization using mixed-effects regression models. We further extrapolated the intervention effects to the German healthcare system.

Findings: Results showed post-surgery health expenditure reductions of 7.9% (-318.08, p = 0.015) for hip and 7.3% (-386.72, p = 0.053) for knee replacements. Significant decreases were observed in outpatient care contacts (-1.51, p = 0.005), physiotherapy sessions (-1.65, p = 0.037), and number of prescriptions (-2.14, p = 0.042) for hip replacements. For knee replacement patients, significant determinants of the cost differences were fewer prescriptions (-3.40, p = 0.013) and medical aids (-0.81, p = 0.041).

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that digital health interventions can reduce utilization and save scarce healthcare resources. It can be hypothesized that the "being taken care of" effect reduced the need for reassurance of the recovery progress, leading to fewer GP visits and decreased utilization of other healthcare services.