Patterns and Costs of Health Care Use of Children With Medical Complexity

Hospital discharge data from 2005 through 2007 identified CMC. Complete health system use and costs were analyzed over the subsequent 2-year period.

The study identified 15 771 hospitalized CMC (0.67% of children in Ontario); 10 340 (65.6%) had single-organ CCC, 1063 (6.7%) multiorgan CCC, 4368 (27.6%) neurologic impairment, and 1863 (11.8%) had TA. CMC saw a median of 13 outpatient physicians and 6 distinct subspecialists. Thirty-six percent received home care services. Thirty-day readmission varied from 12.6% (single CCC without TA) to 23.7% (multiple CCC with TA). CMC accounted for almost one-third of child health spending. Rehospitalization accounted for the largest proportion of subsequent costs (27.2%), followed by home care (11.3%) and physician services (6.0%). Home care costs were a much larger proportion of costs in children with TA. Children with multiple CCC with TA had costs 3.5 times higher than children with a single CCC without TA.