Non-reimbursement for preventable health care-acquired conditions

Swan, Linda

doi:10.5694/mja16.00323

Topics

Medibank supports the statement made by Davis that “current best practice is to proactively produce a health care environment in which controllable factors, such as inevitable errors and systematic failures, do not reach patients”.1 Contrary to Davis’s other claims, however, the efforts made by Medibank to enhance the quality of care for our members align with this practice.

Medibank Private, Sydney, NSW

Correspondence: linda.swan@medibank.com.au

Competing interests:

I am the Chief Medical Officer of Medibank Private.

1. Davis C. Non-reimbursement for preventable health care-acquired conditions. Med J Aust 2016; 204: 98-99. <MJA full text>
2. The Australian Council of Healthcare Standards. Australasian clinical indicator report: 2006–2013. 15th ed. Sydney: ACHS, 2014 http://www.achs.org.au/media/88679/clinical_indicator_report_2006_2013.pdf (accessed May 2016).
3. Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Triple Aim Initiative: better care for individuals, better health for populations, and lower per capita costs. http://www.ihi.org/engage/initiatives/tripleaim/Pages/default.aspx (accessed May 2016).
4. Jackson T, Nghiem HS, Rowell D, et al. Marginal costs of hospital-acquired conditions: information for priority-setting for patient safety programmes and research. J Health Serv Res Policy 2011; 16: 141-146.
5. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Saving lives and saving money: hospital-acquired conditions update. December 2015. AHRQ, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/professionals/quality-patient-safety/pfp/interimhacrate2014.html (accessed May 2016).

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