-
35
Section A: Inpatient management
3 Inpatient management Naomi Massyn, Edwina Mabuela
The district hospital plays a pivotal role in the functioning of
the district health system as it supports primary health care (PHC)
and serves as an entry to more specialist care. District hospitals
treat and admit patients with acute, relatively uncomplicated
illnesses. Complicated cases are referred to a regional or tertiary
hospital.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide feedback on district
hospital performance from which district and hospital management
teams can learn and identify where support or interventions are
needed to improve performance.
The sheer volume of people in South Africa that make use of
public health services coupled with the shortage of human, physical
and financial resources places an immense strain on the public
health system.
While stays in district hospitals are typically shorter than at
regional or tertiary hospitals, it is difficult to predict how long
patients will remain in hospital or the treatment they will
require, as new information on their health, complications and
demise all impact on their management and length of stay.
In order to match a patient to a bed, a set of bed allocation
rules are normally followed. These rules go beyond simply taking
into account the impact on bed utilisation but also the comfort and
protection of the patient. General rules include the following:
✦ Male and female adult patients are usually separated and
allocated to wards according to their needs
✦ Children and babies are separated from adult patients and are
assigned to the correct wards to receive specialised care
✦ Preference is given to emergency patients but beds can also be
reserved for elective patients
✦ Rooms can be used for isolation purposes to protect other
patients from infections or diseases.
This chapter covers the following indicators:
✦ Inpatient bed utilisation rate (IBUR) (district hospitals)
✦ Average length of stay (ALOS) (district hospitals)
✦ Outpatient department (OPD) new client not referred rate
(district hospitals)
✦ Inpatient crude death rate (all hospitals)
✦ Expenditure per patient day equivalent (PDE) (district
hospitals).
3.1 Inpatient bed utilisation rate (district hospitals)The
inpatient bed utilisation rate measures the inpatient bed days used
as a proportion of maximum inpatient bed days (inpatient beds times
days in period) available. It is calculated by dividing the number
of inpatient days plus half-day patients (numerator) by inpatient
bed days available (inpatient beds multiplied by 30.42)
(denominator) and is expressed as a percentage.
High bed occupancy rates have been considered a matter of
reduced patient comfort and privacy and an indicator of high
productivity for hospitals. Hospitals with bed occupancy rates of
above 85 per cent are generally considered to have bed shortages.a
A study conducted in Danish hospitals’ departments of medicine for
the period 1995–2012b found that high bed occupancy rates were
associated with a significant nine per cent increase in rates of
in-hospital mortality and thirty-day mortality, compared to low bed
occupancy rates. Being admitted into a hospital outside of normal
working hours or on a weekend or holiday was also significantly
associated with increased mortality.
A shortage of beds causes the allocation of patients to beds to
become problematic. Cases have been reported where patients share
beds, are allocated to mattresses in hallways, or simply cannot be
admitted.a
a Bloem C. Improving hospital bed utilisation through simulation
and optimisation in South African Public Hospitals. 2014.
University of Pretoria. Available from:
https://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/45144/FinalReport_Connie%20Bloem.pdf?sequence=1.
[Accessed 29 October 2018].
b Madsen F, Ladelund S, Linneberg A. High levels of bed
occupancy associated with increased inpatient and thirty-day
hospital mortality in Denmark. July 2014. Available from:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25006151. [Accessed 29 October
2018].
-
67.3
66.365.8
65.3
63.9 64.1
62.0
63.0
64.0
65.0
66.0
67.0
68.0
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18
Perc
enta
ge
Inpatient bed utilisation rate (district hospitals) by province,
2017/18
Percentage [Source: DHIS]
NC
EC
KZNFS
NW
GP
MP
LP
WC
20 40 60 80 100
57.0
88.3
69.5
54.7
60.2
72.7
63.0
66.9
54.6
SA: 64.1
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
36
Section A: Inpatient management
National overview
The national IBUR for district hospitals in 2017/18 was 64.1%, a
slight increase from 63.9% in 2016/17 (Figure 1). However, the IBUR
has been consistently below 70% for the past six years.
Figure 1: National inpatient bed utilisation rate (district
hospitals), 2012/13–2017/18
Source: DHIS.
Provincial overview
Figure 2 shows that there is a great inter-provincial variation
between the highest IBUR in Western Cape (WC) (88.3%) and the
lowest IBUR in the Northern Cape (NC) (54.6%).
Figure 2: Inpatient bed utilisation rate by province,
2017/18
-
CPT
NMA
BUF
ETH
EKUJHB
DC10
DC12
DC13
DC14
DC15
DC44
DC16
DC18DC19
DC20
MAN
DC42DC48
TSH
DC21
DC22
DC23
DC24
DC25 DC26 DC27
DC28
DC29
DC43
DC33
DC34
DC35
DC36
DC47
DC30
DC31
DC32
DC45
DC6DC7
DC8DC9
DC37
DC38
DC39DC40
DC1
DC2
DC3
DC4
DC5
LegendProvinceDistrict
BUR_DH36.5 - 50.050.1 - 58.258.3 - 65.565.6 - 73.773.8 -
96.0
EKUJHB
DC42
DC48
TSH
Gauteng
37
Section A: Inpatient management
District overview
Map 1 and Figure 3 show the IBUR for district hospitals in
2017/18 by district. The three districts with the highest IBUR were
from Western Cape, all with an IBUR of over 80%, namely Cape Town
(96.0%), Eden (83.9%) and West Coast (81.9%). The three districts
with the lowest IBUR were from Northern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN)
and Eastern Cape (EC), namely, Frances Baard (NC) (36.5%), King
Cetshwayo (KZN) (42.3%) and Chris Hani (EC) (45.5%). Only 25
districts (48.1%) had an IBUR that exceeded the national average of
64.1%.
Map 1: Inpatient bed utilisation rate (district hospitals) by
district, 2017/18
Source: DHIS.
-
Inpatient bed utilisation rate (district hospitals) by district,
2017/18
Percentage [Source: DHIS]
Frances Baard: DC9King Cetshwayo: DC28
C Hani: DC13ZF Mgcawu: DC8
iLembe: DC29uMzinyathi: DC24
T Mofutsanyana: DC19Ngaka Modiri Molema: DC38
Joe Gqabi: DC14Amathole: DC12O Tambo: DC15
Lejweleputswa: DC18eThekwini: ETH
J T Gaetsewe: DC45Pixley ka Seme: DC7
Buffalo City: BUFuMkhanyakude: DC27N Mandela Bay: NMA
Xhariep: DC16Harry Gwala: DC43
Sarah Baartman: DC10A Nzo: DC44
Zululand: DC26Johannesburg: JHBDr K Kaunda: DC40
uThukela: DC23Amajuba: DC25
West Rand: DC48Waterberg: DC36
Tshwane: TSHFezile Dabi: DC20
Ugu: DC21Sekhukhune: DC47
Overberg: DC3G Sibande: DC30
Ruth Segomotsi Mompati: DC39Ehlanzeni: DC32Mangaung:
MANNkangala: DC31
Central Karoo: DC5Capricorn: DC35
Bojanala Platinum: DC37uMgungundlovu: DC22
Sedibeng: DC42Vhembe: DC34Namakwa: DC6
City of Ekurhuleni: EKUMopani: DC33
Cape Winelands: DC2West Coast: DC1
Eden: DC4Cape Town: CPT
20 40 60 80 100
50.049.2
42.3
67.0
75.5
61.5
56.6
64.0
57.7
63.3
58.2
79.181.9
70.5
96.083.9
69.069.2
69.4
70.3
54.3
57.7
55.854.9
45.5
60.260.6
57.4
65.5
70.1
57.9
56.0
51.9
71.8
77.9
68.9
76.7
64.9
73.7
69.2
62.3
52.1
77.8
61.5
65.0
64.5
75.9
36.5
56.9
77.1
57.3
46.4
SA: 64.1
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
38
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 3: Inpatient bed utilisation rate (district hospitals) by
district, 2017/18
-
39
Section A: Inpatient management
Table 1 presents the IBUR trends for district hospitals over
time for the period 2013/14 – 2017/18. The IBUR of most of the
districts remained relatively stable. Only two districts had an
increase of more than 10 percentage points between 2013/14 –
2017/18, namely Amajuba (KZN) (19.7 percentage points) and
Capricorn (Limpopo (LP)) (23.3 percentage points). Nine districts
had a decrease of more than 10 percentage points between 2013/14 –
2017/18, with the highest decrease in Zwelentlanga Fatman Mgcawu
(NC) (31.2 percentage points), Fezile Dabi (Free State (FS)) (29.6
percentage points) and eThekwini (KZN) (26.6 percentage points).
Namakwa (NC) also showed a decrease of 60.3 percentage points, but
the reason is due to data quality issues with denominators for
Calvinia Hospital for most of 2013/14 missing.c Eastern Cape, Free
State, Gauteng (GP) and Northern Cape had a decrease of more than
10 percentage points in the IBUR between 2013/14 – 2017/18.
Table 1: Annual trends: inpatient bed utilisation rate (district
hospitals), 2013/14 – 2017/18
Province Local municipality 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17
2017/18Eastern Cape Alfred Nzo 60.7 65.8 60.2 58.4 60.6
Amathole 59.1 59.0 55.1 55.0 54.9Buffalo City 64.9 56.6 53.4
58.4 57.4Chris Hani 53.6 50.2 49.7 48.4 45.5Joe Gqabi 70.7 70.4
64.3 58.7 54.3Nelson Mandela Bay 58.5 60.5 62.1 56.5 57.7OR Tambo
58.8 55.5 56.4 57.6 55.8Sarah Baartman 59.4 63.9 66.6 63.0 60.2
Eastern Cape 70.7 70.4 66.6 63.0 60.6Free State Fezile Dabi 95.1
68.7 68.9 68.3 65.5
Lejweleputswa 50.1 49.6 54.2 60.9 56.0Mangaung 74.3 67.2 69.5
64.2 70.1Thabo Mofutsanyana 51.9 50.6 50.1 52.2 51.9Xhariep 71.2
80.8 63.8 72.8 57.9
Free State 95.1 80.8 69.5 72.8 70.1Gauteng City of Ekurhuleni
89.2 69.0 69.2 73.7 77.8
Johannesburg 52.9 45.1 66.3 65.5 61.5Sedibeng 67.1 69.5 73.9
76.1 75.9Tshwane 67.5 62.4 63.7 62.7 65.0West Rand 70.3 66.7 60.5
56.8 64.5
Gauteng 89.2 69.5 73.9 76.1 77.8KwaZulu-Natal Amajuba 44.3 62.6
60.8 71.5 64.0
eThekwini 83.2 74.5 68.5 58.7 56.6Harry Gwala 66.8 64.9 63.6
52.8 58.2iLembe 56.7 56.5 56.9 49.2 49.2King Cetshwayo 47.2 50.0
46.9 44.4 42.3Ugu 72.0 69.4 66.3 59.5 67.0uMgungundlovu 74.6 79.6
80.5 78.9 75.5uMkhanyakude 60.7 60.2 56.0 58.4 57.7uMzinyathi 63.6
53.6 54.4 51.9 50.0uThukela 63.4 63.7 61.7 60.4 63.3Zululand 67.5
67.0 62.7 57.6 61.5
KwaZulu-Natal 83.2 79.6 80.5 78.9 75.5Limpopo Capricorn 48.5
69.5 73.0 74.9 71.8
Mopani 74.2 78.8 71.4 72.1 77.9Sekhukhune 64.9 63.3 61.4 68.1
68.9Vhembe 73.7 69.0 75.4 69.4 76.7Waterberg 61.8 63.1 62.1 62.6
64.9
Limpopo 74.2 78.8 75.4 74.9 77.9Mpumalanga Ehlanzeni 73.5 73.8
72.6 80.9 69.4
G Sibande 65.8 66.7 68.1 69.3 69.2Nkangala 72.6 72.8 73.5 73.3
70.3
Mpumalanga 73.5 73.8 73.5 80.9 70.3Northern Cape Frances Baard
51.9 36.3 38.4 38.3 36.5
John Taolo Gaetsewe 54.3 58.7 57.2 60.9 56.9Namakwa 137.4 97.6
89.5 80.5 77.1Pixley Ka Seme 57.6 64.8 65.6 61.8 57.3Zwelentlanga
Fatman Mgcawu 77.6 74.1 72.4 51.4 46.4
Northern Cape 137.4 97.6 89.5 80.5 77.1
c Massyn N, Day C, Peer N, Padarath A, Barron P, English R,
editors. District Health Barometer 2013/14. Durban: Health Systems
Trust; October 2014.
-
40
Section A: Inpatient management
Province Local municipality 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17
2017/18North West Bojanala Platinum 78.4 76.4 74.8 75.8 73.7
Dr K Kaunda 70.6 67.4 77.0 78.2 62.3Ngaka Modiri Molema 49.2
55.5 49.3 56.4 52.1Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati 60.3 63.3 62.7 65.4
69.2
North West 78.4 76.4 77.0 78.2 73.7Western Cape Cape Town 97.6
99.4 93.9 91.8 96.0
Cape Winelands 76.1 74.2 77.9 74.7 79.1Central Karoo 72.6 70.6
73.6 69.7 70.5Eden 83.4 83.1 86.0 83.0 83.9Overberg 75.3 73.3 75.7
68.9 69.0West Coast 83.2 81.4 79.4 77.4 81.9
Western Cape 97.6 99.4 93.9 91.8 96.0South Africa 137.4 99.4
93.9 91.8 96.0
Source: DHIS.
Orange indicates a decrease in the IBUR of more than 10
percentage points. Green indicates an increase in the IBUR of more
than 10 percentage.
Twenty-four district hospitals had an IBUR below 40% in 2017/18.
Most of the district hospitals were in the Eastern Cape (13), Free
State (five), Northern Cape (four) and KwaZulu-Natal (two).
3.2 Average length of stay (district hospitals)Average length of
stay is defined as the average number of days an admitted patient
spends in hospital before separation. It is calculated by dividing
the number of inpatient days plus half-day patients by the number
of inpatient separations and this is expressed as a number of days.
Inpatient separations are the sum of inpatient deaths, inpatient
discharges and inpatient transfers out.
When a patient is admitted to hospital, not all the necessary
medical treatments are always known at the start of the patient’s
stay.a New findings during the patient’s treatment might change the
priority group of the patient, giving rise to more treatments or
complications. This causes variability in the ALOS of the
patient.
A relatively high bed utilisation rate and low average length of
stay are indicative of a well-functioning district hospital. The
ALOS is a proxy measure of the efficiency of the hospital.c
If the ALOS is persistently high it suggests that patients spend
too much time in hospital either because they are not discharged
when they should be or not appropriately treated resulting in
longer recovery times. Reasons for this might be a shortage of
doctors, patients discharged do not have transport to go home, and
are therefore not administratively discharged and admitted as
boarders, and district hospitals with dedicated tuberculosis and
psychiatric wards. Admission, treatment and discharge procedures
should therefore be adhered to all the time. The persistently low
ALOS (less than 1.5 days), could mean that patients are discharged
earlier than they should be, due to high IBUR where demand for beds
might lead to patients getting discharged too soon. It can also be
because referral rates to levels of care are high.
National overview
The national ALOS decreased annually from 4.7 days in 2013/14 to
4.3 days in 2017/18 (Figure 4).
-
4.2
4.7
4.6
4.5
4.4
4.3
3.9
4.0
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.8
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18
Day
s
Average length of stay (district hospitals) by province,
2017/18
Days [Source: DHIS]
KZN
EC
GP
LP
MP
NW
WC
FS
NC
1 2 3 4 5 6
3.2
4.4
5.4
4.3
4.1
4.9
4.2
3.3
3.3
SA: 4.3
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
41
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 4: National average length of stay (district hospitals),
2012/13–2017/18
Source: DHIS.
Provincial overview
Figure 5 shows that KwaZulu-Natal had the longest ALOS at 5.4
days followed by Eastern Cape at 4.9 days. The ALOS in the Northern
Cape, Free State and Western Cape was on average three days shorter
than in KwaZulu-Natal and two days shorter than in the Eastern
Cape.
Figure 5: Average length of stay (district hospitals) by
province, 2017/18
District overview
Map 2 and Figure 6 show the district ALOS for district hospitals
by district in 2017/18. uMzinyathi (KZN) had the longest ALOS at
6.3 days and Namakwa (NC) had the shortest ALOS at 2.6 days. Of the
25 districts with an ALOS longer than the national average of 4.3
days were all 11 districts in KwaZulu-Natal and six of the eight
districts in Eastern Cape.
-
CPT
NMA
BUF
ETH
EKUJHB
DC10
DC12
DC13
DC14
DC15
DC44
DC16
DC18DC19
DC20
MAN
DC42DC48
TSH
DC21
DC22
DC23
DC24
DC25 DC26 DC27
DC28
DC29
DC43
DC33
DC34
DC35
DC36
DC47
DC30
DC31
DC32
DC45
DC6DC7
DC8DC9
DC37
DC38
DC39DC40
DC1
DC2
DC3
DC4
DC5
LegendProvinceDistrict
ALOS_DH 2.6 - 3.23.3 - 4.14.2 - 4.84.9 - 5.65.7 - 6.3
EKUJHB
DC42
DC48
TSH
Gauteng
42
Section A: Inpatient management
Map 2: Average length of stay by district, 2017/18
Source: DHIS.
-
Average length of stay (district hospitals) by district,
2017/18
Days [Source: DHIS]
uMzinyathi: DC24O Tambo: DC15
King Cetshwayo: DC28Buffalo City: BUF
Ugu: DC21uMkhanyakude: DC27
Zululand: DC26iLembe: DC29
uThukela: DC23uMgungundlovu: DC22
Joe Gqabi: DC14Amathole: DC12
A Nzo: DC44Harry Gwala: DC43Johannesburg: JHB
Nkangala: DC31C Hani: DC13Mopani: DC33
eThekwini: ETHBojanala Platinum: DC37
City of Ekurhuleni: EKUNgaka Modiri Molema: DC38
Vhembe: DC34Amajuba: DC25Tshwane: TSH
G Sibande: DC30West Rand: DC48
Sekhukhune: DC47Capricorn: DC35Waterberg: DC36Ehlanzeni:
DC32
Sarah Baartman: DC10Sedibeng: DC42
Xhariep: DC16J T Gaetsewe: DC45
Cape Town: CPTMangaung: MAN
N Mandela Bay: NMARuth Segomotsi Mompati: DC39
Fezile Dabi: DC20Dr K Kaunda: DC40
ZF Mgcawu: DC8T Mofutsanyana: DC19
Frances Baard: DC9Pixley ka Seme: DC7
Central Karoo: DC5West Coast: DC1
Eden: DC4Cape Winelands: DC2
Overberg: DC3Lejweleputswa: DC18
Namakwa: DC6
1 2 3 4 5 6
3.8
2.6
3.0
3.2
3.0
4.5
4.8
4.4
4.0
4.3
5.45.4
5.9
5.6
5.3
5.5
6.3
5.4
4.4
5.0
4.6
4.2
4.6
4.2
4.4
4.1
3.2
4.4
4.5
3.73.7
6.1
4.0
5.0
5.6
5.2
4.0
4.7
5.0
4.6
4.3
3.5
2.6
3.0
3.7
3.8
2.8
2.9
3.7
2.8
2.7
2.8
SA: 4.3
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
43
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 6: Average length of stay (district hospitals) by
district, 2017/18
-
Annual trends: Average length of stay (district hospitals)
Day
s
2
4
6
8EC FS
● ● ●●
●
● ● ●● ●
GP
2
4
6
8KZN
●● ●
●● ● ● ● ● ●
LP MP
2
4
6
8
2008
/09
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NC
2008
/09
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NW
2008
/09
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
●
●● ● ●
● ●● ● ●
WC
EC A NzoEC AmatholeEC Buffalo CityEC C HaniEC Joe GqabiEC N
Mandela BayEC O TamboEC Sarah BaartmanFS Fezile DabiFS
LejweleputswaFS MangaungFS T MofutsanyanaFS Xhariep
GP City of Ekurhuleni GP Johannesburg GP SedibengGP TshwaneGP
West RandKZN AmajubaKZN eThekwiniKZN Harry GwalaKZN iLembeKZN King
Cetshwayo KZN UguKZN uMgungundlovu KZN uMkhanyakude
KZN uMzinyathi KZN uThukelaKZ ZululandLP CapricornLP MopaniLP
Sekhukhune LP VhembeLP Waterberg MP Ehlanzeni MP G Sibande MP
Nkangala NC Frances Baard NC J T Gaetsewe
NC NamakwaNC Pixley ka SemeNC ZF MgcawuNW Bojanala PlatinumNW Dr
K KaundaNW Ngaka Modiri MolemaNW Ruth Segomotsi MompatiWC Cape
TownWC Cape WinelandsWC Central KarooWC EdenWC OverbergWC West
Coast
●
●
●
44
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 7 shows annual trends in ALOS for district hospitals
between 2008/09 – 2017/18. Districts in Eastern Cape show
variations in ALOS ranging from around three days to above six
days. OR Tambo (EC) had the longest ALOS since 2013/14. There are
also variations in ALOS for districts in KwaZulu-Natal ranging
between four to six days. Cape Town is the only district in Western
Cape which had an ALOS around 4 days even with a decrease in the
ALOS from 2015/16.
Figure 7: Annual trends: Average length of stay (district
hospitals), 2008/09 – 2017/18 (days)
Source: DHIS.
-
PrimaryHealth Care
Community Health Centres
District Hospitals
RegionalHospitals
Tertiary Hospitals
Emergency Care
Emergency Care
Emergency Care
Level of Specialised Care
45
Section A: Inpatient management
Twenty-five district hospitals had an ALOS of six days or more.
Of the 25 hospitals, 14 are in the Eastern Cape and nine in
KwaZulu-Natal. Only two hospitals with a long ALOS also had a low
IBUR, namely Mjanyana Hospital in Chris Hani (EC) and St Lucy’s
Hospital in OR Tambo (EC).
3.3 OPD new client not referred rate (district hospitals)The OPD
new client not referred rate is defined as new OPD clients not
referred as a proportion of the total OPD new clients seen at a
hospital. It monitors utilisation trends of clients by-passing PHC
facilities and the effect of PHC re-engineering on OPD utilisation.
It does not include OPD follow-up and emergency clients in the
denominator. It therefore monitors clients that access hospitals
directly for PHC services including the treatment of minor
ailments.
The South African public health sector has a hierarchical
referral structure between the hospitals and clinicsa as shown in
Figure 8.
Figure 8: Hierarchical referral structure of public
hospitalsa
All patients must first receive primary care at a clinic or
health centre where initial diagnosis and treatments are
conducted.a If required, patients are then referred to a district
hospital to be admitted. If patients require specialised care, they
are transferred to a regional or tertiary hospital. The district,
regional and tertiary hospitals all have an emergency department
through which patients can also be admitted.
National overview
The national OPD new client not referred rate declined from
64.1% in 2012/13 to 58.4% in 2015/16, but then increased to 59.3%
in 2016/17 and to 60.4% in 2017/18 (Figure 9).
-
64.1
61.560.7
58.4
59.3
60.4
55.0
56.0
57.0
58.0
59.0
60.0
61.0
62.0
63.0
64.0
65.0
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18
Perc
enta
ge
OPD new client not referred rate (district hospitals) by
province, 2017/18
Percentage [Source: DHIS]
LP
NC
FS
MP
GP
EC
NW
KZN
WC
20 40 60 80
13.6
55.9
71.3
72.4
67.5
66.7
50.4
63.1
71.7
SA: 60.4
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
46
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 9: National OPD new client not referred rate (district
hospitals), 2012/13–2017/18
Source: DHIS.
Provincial overview
Figure 10 shows that Western Cape was the province with the
lowest OPD new client not referred rate at 13.6% in 2017/18. The
OPD new client not referred rate for the other provinces ranged
between 50.4% in KwaZulu-Natal to 72.4% in Limpopo. The Northern
Cape and Free State also had OPD new client not referred rates
above 70% in 2017/18 at 71.7% and 71.3% respectively.
Figure 10: OPD new client not referred rate (district hospitals)
by province, 2017/18
-
CPT
NMA
BUF
ETH
EKUJHB
DC10
DC12
DC13
DC14
DC15
DC44
DC16
DC18DC19
DC20
MAN
DC42DC48
TSH
DC21
DC22
DC23
DC24
DC25 DC26 DC27
DC28
DC29
DC43
DC33
DC34
DC35
DC36
DC47
DC30
DC31
DC32
DC45
DC6DC7
DC8DC9
DC37
DC38
DC39DC40
DC1
DC2
DC3
DC4
DC5
LegendProvinceDistrict
OPDNNRR_DH1.5 - 14.614.7 - 43.543.6 - 60.660.7 - 72.973.0 -
83.6
EKUJHB
DC42
DC48
TSH
Gauteng
47
Section A: Inpatient management
District overview
Map 3 and Figure 11 show the OPD new client not referred rate by
district for 2017/18. The five districts with lowest OPD new client
not referred rate were Central Karoo (WC) (1.5%), Overberg (WC)
(4.6%), Nelson Mandela Bay (EC) (9.3%), Eden (WC) (9.5%) and West
Coast (WC) (11.4%). All six districts in the Western Cape were
among the districts with the lowest OPD new client not referred
rate.
The five districts with the highest OPD new client not referred
rate were Waterberg (LP) (83.6%), Frances Baard (NC) (81.7%),
Sekhukhune (LP) (81.1%), Thabo Mofutsanyana (FS) (80.5%) and
Tshwane (GP) (75.6%).
Map 3: OPD new client not referred rate by district, 2017/18
Source: DHIS.
-
OPD new client not referred rate (district hospitals) by
district, 2017/18
Percentage [Source: DHIS]
Waterberg: DC36Frances Baard: DC9Sekhukhune: DC47
T Mofutsanyana: DC19Tshwane: TSH
Pixley ka Seme: DC7Joe Gqabi: DC14
J T Gaetsewe: DC45West Rand: DC48
C Hani: DC13King Cetshwayo: DC28
Sedibeng: DC42Capricorn: DC35
Xhariep: DC16uMzinyathi: DC24
Mopani: DC33Nkangala: DC31Ehlanzeni: DC32
Johannesburg: JHBBuffalo City: BUF
Fezile Dabi: DC20ZF Mgcawu: DC8
Vhembe: DC34Mangaung: MAN
G Sibande: DC30Sarah Baartman: DC10
Ngaka Modiri Molema: DC38iLembe: DC29
Amathole: DC12Namakwa: DC6
Lejweleputswa: DC18A Nzo: DC44
Ruth Segomotsi Mompati: DC39O Tambo: DC15
Harry Gwala: DC43Amajuba: DC25Zululand: DC26
City of Ekurhuleni: EKUuMkhanyakude: DC27
Ugu: DC21Bojanala Platinum: DC37
uThukela: DC23eThekwini: ETH
Dr K Kaunda: DC40uMgungundlovu: DC22Cape Winelands: DC2
Cape Town: CPTWest Coast: DC1
Eden: DC4N Mandela Bay: NMA
Overberg: DC3Central Karoo: DC5
20 40 60 80
1.5
9.5
4.6
11.4
23.914.6
40.9
30.9
55.9
62.0
70.4
67.3
59.3
64.8
80.5
69.3
64.8
83.6
71.0
81.1
68.9
63.9
69.1
47.2
75.6
45.7
69.7
72.1
72.9
51.2
34.6
52.3
28.5
56.9
60.6
67.5
72.7
67.9
36.6
50.5
53.9
74.6
71.1
61.8
43.5
9.3
62.8
81.7
74.4
75.5
60.5
66.1
SA: 60.4
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
48
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 11: OPD new client not referred rate (district hospitals)
by district, 2017/18
-
Annual trends: OPD new client not referred rate (district
hospitals)
Perc
enta
ge
0
20
40
60
80
100EC FS
●
●
●
● ●
●●
●
GP
0
20
40
60
80
100KZN
● ● ● ● ●
●●
●
LP MP
0
20
40
60
80
100
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NC
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NW
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
●
●
●
●
●
WC
EC A NzoEC AmatholeEC Buffalo CityEC C HaniEC Joe GqabiEC N
Mandela BayEC O TamboEC Sarah BaartmanFS Fezile DabiFS
LejweleputswaFS MangaungFS T MofutsanyanaFS Xhariep
GP City of Ekurhuleni GP Johannesburg GP SedibengGP TshwaneGP
West RandKZN AmajubaKZN eThekwiniKZN Harry GwalaKZN iLembeKZN King
Cetshwayo KZN UguKZN uMgungundlovu KZN uMkhanyakude
KZN uMzinyathi KZN uThukelaKZN ZululandLP CapricornLP MopaniLP
Sekhukhune LP VhembeLP Waterberg MP Ehlanzeni MP G Sibande MP
Nkangala NC Frances Baard NC J T Gaetsewe
NC NamakwaNC Pixley ka SemeNC ZF MgcawuNW Bojanala PlatinumNW Dr
K KaundaNW Ngaka Modiri MolemaNW Ruth Segomotsi MompatiWC Cape
TownWC Cape WinelandsWC Central KarooWC EdenWC OverbergWC West
Coast
●
●
●
49
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 12 shows annual trends per province per district for the
period 2010/11 – 2017/18. In the Free State, Xhariep shows an
annual increase in the rate over the years from 32.7% in 2013/14 to
70.4% in 2017/18 and needs to be investigated. In the Northern
Cape, the OPD new client not referred rate in John Taolo Gaetsewe
increased from 35.4% in 2016/17 to 74.4% in 2017/18 and also needs
to be investigated.
Figure 12: Annual trends: OPD new client not referred rate
(district hospitals), 2010/11 – 2017/18 (%)
Source: DHIS.
-
50
Section A: Inpatient management
Twenty-one district hospitals had an OPD new client not referred
rate above 90%. In three hospitals all clients seen at the
OPD/casualty unit bypassed the PHC facilities and accessed the
hospitals directly for PHC services. These hospitals were in Joe
Gqabi (EC), Capricorn (LP) and Pixley Ka Seme (NC) districts.
3.4 Inpatient crude death rate (all hospitals)The inpatient
crude death rate is defined as, clients who died during hospital
stay as a proportion of inpatient separations – total. It monitors
trends in inpatient deaths and provides an indication of the
quality of inpatient care.
The factors that influence the quality of cared include the
following:
✦ effective clinical care
✦ end of life care
✦ documentation and informatics
✦ leadership
✦ reliable care systems.
In recent years, monitoring deaths in hospital has become a
standard part of assessing the performance of our hospitals and the
quality of their care. There are two ways to consider in-hospital
mortality rates. It can be done by looking at either crude
mortality rates or standardised mortality ratios (SMRs). Both are a
valid measure of mortality and are constructed from numbers of
deaths. Together, they provide an indication that there may be
cause for concern, but do not definitively demonstrate that there
is.d For SMRs, the number of deaths within a given time period is
divided by the expected numbers of deaths. Expected deaths has a
specific meaning in the context of SMRs. The term is used to
provide an indication of how likely a patient was to die of the
symptoms they had when they came into hospital.
The methodology used to calculate the expected number of
in-hospital deaths is complex. It involves using a range of
variables to ‘adjust’ or ‘standardise’ the data to reflect the risk
(or likelihood) of death. These factors consider aspects such
as:
✦ Whether the patient was an emergency or an elective
admission.
✦ Their age and gender.
✦ The diagnosis they were given when they were first admitted to
hospital.
✦ Important co-morbidities the patient may have.
✦ Whether they are a palliative care patient.
✦ The relative affluence of the area in which they live.
In contrast, crude mortality rates do not consider these
factors. For this reason crude rates are not appropriate for
comparisons of organisations with different catchment areas as the
cohort of people who are admitted to the hospital will have a
different case-mix, age and gender profiles.d
d Advancing Quality Alliance. Reducing In-hospital Mortality.
Observations arising from AQuA’s work. May 2013. Available from
https://www.aquanw.nhs.uk/resources/analytics/Reducing-In-hospital-Mortality.pdf.
[Accessed 1 November 2018].
-
5.85.4 5.2 5.0 4.9 4.8
0.0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
7.0
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18
Perc
enta
ge
Inpatient crude death rate by province, 2017/18
Percentage [Source: DHIS]
EC
NW
GP
KZNFS
NC
MP
LP
WC
2 4 6
5.1
4.9
4.8
4.9
3.0
5.0
4.8
6.2
6.1
SA: 4.8
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
51
Section A: Inpatient management
National overview
The national inpatient crude death rate decreased annually from
5.8% in 2012/13 to 4.8% in 2017/18 (Figure 13).
Figure 13: National inpatient crude death rate (all hospitals),
2012/13–2017/18
Source: DHIS.
Provincial overview
Figure 14 shows the inpatient crude death rate by province for
2017/18. The three provinces with the lowest inpatient crude death
rate were Western Cape (3.0%), Limpopo and Mpumalanga (MP) (both at
4.8%). The province with the highest inpatient crude death rate was
Eastern Cape (6.2%) followed by North West (NW) (6.1%). Eastern
Cape had the second longest ALOS (4.9 days) as well as the second
lowest IBUR (54.7%) among the provinces.
Figure 14: Inpatient crude death rate by province, 2017/18
-
CPT
NMA
BUF
ETH
EKUJHB
DC10
DC12
DC13
DC14
DC15
DC44
DC16
DC18DC19
DC20
MAN
DC42DC48
TSH
DC21
DC22
DC23
DC24
DC25 DC26 DC27
DC28
DC29
DC43
DC33
DC34
DC35
DC36
DC47
DC30
DC31
DC32
DC45
DC6DC7
DC8DC9
DC37
DC38
DC39DC40
DC1
DC2
DC3
DC4
DC5
LegendProvinceDistrict
CRUDEATH2.6 - 3.33.4 - 4.54.6 - 5.35.4 - 6.06.1 - 6.9
EKUJHB
DC42
DC48
TSH
Gauteng
52
Section A: Inpatient management
District overview
The four districts with the lowest inpatient crude death rate in
2017/18 were from Western Cape, namely, Overberg (2.6%), Cape
Winelands (3.0%), Cape Town (3.0%) and Eden (3.0%) (Map 4 and
Figure 15). Namakwa (NC) (3.1%) and Central Karoo (WC) (3.1%) also
had an inpatient crude death rate around 3%.
The five districts with the highest inpatient crude death rate
were Chris Hani (EC) (6.9%), Joe Gqabi (EC) (6.9%), OR Tambo (EC)
(6.5%), Nkangala (MP) (6.5%) and Fezile Dabi (FS) (6.4%).
Map 4: Inpatient crude death rate by district, 2017/18
Source: DHIS.
-
Inpatient crude death rate by district, 2017/18
Percentage [Source: DHIS]
C Hani: DC13Joe Gqabi: DC14O Tambo: DC15Nkangala: DC31
Fezile Dabi: DC20Amathole: DC12
Ngaka Modiri Molema: DC38A Nzo: DC44
Bojanala Platinum: DC37Xhariep: DC16
Dr K Kaunda: DC40Buffalo City: BUFuThukela: DC23
Ruth Segomotsi Mompati: DC39King Cetshwayo: DC28
Harry Gwala: DC43Amajuba: DC25
N Mandela Bay: NMACapricorn: DC35Sedibeng: DC42Zululand:
DC26
uMzinyathi: DC24West Rand: DC48ZF Mgcawu: DC8
Ugu: DC21Frances Baard: DC9
Lejweleputswa: DC18Pixley ka Seme: DC7
Sarah Baartman: DC10T Mofutsanyana: DC19
Johannesburg: JHBCity of Ekurhuleni: EKU
iLembe: DC29uMgungundlovu: DC22uMkhanyakude: DC27
Mopani: DC33Tshwane: TSHVhembe: DC34
Ehlanzeni: DC32Waterberg: DC36Mangaung: MAN
G Sibande: DC30eThekwini: ETH
Sekhukhune: DC47J T Gaetsewe: DC45
West Coast: DC1Central Karoo: DC5
Namakwa: DC6Eden: DC4
Cape Town: CPTCape Winelands: DC2
Overberg: DC3
2 4 6
5.15.1
4.8
5.6
5.5
5.3
4.2
3.1
5.2
5.4
5.6
4.9
4.2
4.7
4.5
5.2
6.2
5.1
6.4
4.4
3.0
3.1
3.03.0
2.6
3.3
5.0
4.5
6.5
5.75.7
4.9
5.9
5.7
5.3
4.9
4.2
5.5
4.2
5.5
6.9
5.6
6.3
6.06.1
6.5
5.1
6.36.3
6.9
6.2
5.8
SA: 4.8
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
53
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 15: Inpatient crude death rate by district, 2017/18
-
Annual trends: Inpatient crude death rate
Perc
enta
ge
2
4
6
8
10
EC FS
● ● ●● ●
●● ●
●
GP
2
4
6
8
10
KZN
● ●● ●
● ● ●●
●
LP MP
2
4
6
8
10
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NC
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NW
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
●●
●
●● ● ● ●
●
WC
EC A NzoEC AmatholeEC Buffalo CityEC C HaniEC Joe GqabiEC N
Mandela BayEC O TamboEC Sarah BaartmanFS Fezile DabiFS
LejweleputswaFS MangaungFS T MofutsanyanaFS Xhariep
GP City of Ekurhuleni GP Johannesburg GP SedibengGP TshwaneGP
West RandKZN AmajubaKZN eThekwiniKZN Harry GwalaKZN iLembeKZN King
Cetshwayo KZN UguKZN uMgungundlovu KZN uMkhanyakude
KZN uMzinyathi KZN uThukelaKZN ZululandLP CapricornLP MopaniLP
Sekhukhune LP VhembeLP Waterberg MP Ehlanzeni MP G Sibande MP
Nkangala NC Frances Baard NC J T Gaetsewe
NC NamakwaNC Pixley ka SemeNC ZF MgcawuNW Bojanala PlatinumNW Dr
K KaundaNW Ngaka Modiri MolemaNW Ruth Segomotsi MompatiWC Cape
TownWC Cape WinelandsWC Central KarooWC EdenWC OverbergWC West
Coast
●
●
●
54
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 16 shows annual trends per province and districts for the
period 2009/10 – 2017/18. The inpatient crude death rate remained
relatively stable in most of the districts in this period. Two
districts in Eastern Cape had a decrease of more than 1 percentage
point in the period, namely, Alfred Nzo (1.2 percentage points) and
OR Tambo (1.3 percentage points). The same applies to Limpopo
(Capricorn and Mopani (both 1.2 percentage points), Mpumalanga
(Ehlanzeni,1.1 percentage points) and Gert Sibande (1.3 percentage
points) and Northern Cape (Frances Baard,1.0 percentage point) and
John Taolo Gaetsewe (1.9 percentage points). Lejweleputswa in the
Free State had the highest decrease of 2.1 percentage points in the
rate in the same period.
Figure 16: Annual trends: Inpatient crude death rate (district
hospitals), 2009/10 – 2017/18
Source: DHIS.
-
2 3622 405
2 497
2 602
2 690
2 803
2 100
2 200
2 300
2 400
2 500
2 600
2 700
2 800
2 900
2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18
Ran
d
55
Section A: Inpatient management
Twenty district hospitals had an inpatient crude death rate of
more than eight per cent in 2017/18. Twelve of the 20 hospitals
were in the Eastern Cape, four in North West and three in the Free
State.
3.5 Expenditure per patient day equivalent (district
hospitals)Expenditure per PDE is defined as average cost per
patient day equivalent. Patient day equivalent is the sum of
inpatient days total plus half of day patients, plus one-third of
outpatients and emergency headcount total. Expenditure per PDE
connects financial data with service-related data from the hospital
admissions and outpatient records. This indicator measures how the
resources available to the hospital are being spent and is a marker
of efficiency. This indicator is calculated by dividing the total
expenditure of the hospital by the PDE and is expressed as Rand (R)
per PDE.
District health services (DHS) budgets are divided into nine
sub-programmes. District hospitals remain the largest
sub-programme, and in 2016/17 made up 35.3% of total DHS
expenditure.e Historical expenditure in this section has been
adjusted for inflation and is presented in real 2017/18 prices.
Comparative analysis of costs involved to perform the same
activity across facilities is important in monitoring performance
efficiency. It is assumed that the average cost of one inpatient
day is equivalent to that of three outpatient visits. Historically,
under-utilisation of hospital services, and over-staffing with
fixed costs like salaries, are common causes of high PDEs. This
results in high expenditures with low utilisation. As expenditure
per PDE is a ratio between costs and services, improved performance
is possible if costs are reduced or utilisation increased.f
Expenditure per PDE can be compared across similar hospitals
within or between districts. Rural hospitals, particularly those
located in more remote areas, struggle to attract and retain staff
for many reasons, including poor hospital infrastructure, lack of
staff accommodation, uneven remuneration of staff working in
different rural locations, and poor road and transport
networks.g
Consequently, some of these hospitals are poorly utilised, with
a low IBUR, and may have high expenditure per PDE since almost all
fixed costs remain the same even if facilities are not fully
utilised. Certain district hospitals, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal
and the Eastern Cape, offer some regional and tertiary hospital
services. This may result in higher expenditure per PDE since
expenditure per PDE generally increases with the level of care, as
the category of staff (e.g. medical specialists), and commodities
for such levels of care are expensive and in most cases not
adequately budgeted for.f
National overview
National expenditure per PDE for district hospitals increased
from R2 362 in 2012/13 to R2 803 in 2017/18 (figure
17).
Figure 17: National expenditure per patient day equivalent
(district hospitals), 2012/13–2017/18
Source: DHIS.
e Massyn N, Padarath A, Peer N, Day C, editors. District Health
Barometer 2016/17. Durban: Health Systems Trust; 2017.
f Massyn N, Peer N, English R, Padarath A, Barron P, Day C,
editors. District Health Barometer 2015/16. Durban: Health Systems
Trust; 2016.
g Barron P, Monticelli F. Key district health indicators. Volume
1. Durban: Health Systems Trust, 2007.
-
Expenditure per patient day equivalent (district hospitals) by
province, 2017/18
Rand (real prices) [Source: DHB 2017/18]
WC
MP
EC
NC
FSKZN
LP
GP
NW
1000 2000 3000 4000 5000
2609
2647
3265
2904
2469
3495
2632
3032
2450
SA: 2803
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
CPT
NMA
BUF
ETH
EKUJHB
DC10
DC12
DC13
DC14
DC15
DC44
DC16
DC18DC19
DC20
MAN
DC42DC48
TSH
DC21
DC22
DC23
DC24
DC25 DC26 DC27
DC28
DC29
DC43
DC33
DC34
DC35
DC36
DC47
DC30
DC31
DC32
DC45
DC6DC7
DC8DC9
DC37
DC38
DC39DC40
DC1
DC2
DC3
DC4
DC5
LegendProvinceDistrict
EXPPDE_DH1862 - 22622263 - 26982699 - 30543055 - 36093610 -
4732
EKUJHB
DC42
DC48
TSH
Gauteng
56
Section A: Inpatient management
Provincial overview
Figure 18 shows expenditure per PDE by province for 2017/18. The
province with the highest expenditure per PDE was North West at
R3 495, much higher than the national average of R2 803.
The province with the lowest expenditure per PDE was Western Cape
at R2 450.
Figure 18: Expenditure per patient day equivalent (district
hospitals) by province, 2017/18
District overview
Map 5 and Figure 19 show expenditure per PDE by district in
2017/18. The five districts with the highest expenditure per PDE
were Amajuba (KZN) (R4 732), Frances Baard (NC) (R4
087), iLembe (KZN) (R3 894), Ngaka Modiri Molema (NW)
(R3 854) and Waterberg (LP) (R3 828). Five districts with
the lowest expenditure per PDE were Zwelentlanga Fatman Mgcawu (NC)
(R1 862), Cape Winelands (WC) (R1 961), Eden (WC)
(R2 119), John Taolo Gaetsewe (NC) (R2 245) and West
Coast (WC) (R2 262).
Map 5: Expenditure per patient day equivalent by district,
2017/18
Source: DHIS.
-
Expenditure per patient day equivalent (district hospitals) by
district, 2017/18
Rand (real prices) [Source: DHB 2017/18]
ZF Mgcawu: DC8Cape Winelands: DC2
Eden: DC4JT Gaetsewe: DC45
West Coast: DC1eThekwini: ETH
Ehlanzeni: DC32Mopani: DC33
A Nzo: DC44G Sibande: DC30Amathole: DC12
Sarah Baartman: DC10Lejweleputswa: DC18
Central Karoo: DC5uMgungundlovu: DC22
C Hani: DC13Cape Town: CPT
T Mofutsanyana: DC19Fezile Dabi: DC20
Ugu: DC21City of Ekurhuleni: EKU
Buffalo City: BUFO Tambo: DC15
Mangaung: MANPixley ka Seme: DC7
Nkangala: DC31King Cetshwayo: DC28
Namakwa: DC6Vhembe: DC34
Joe Gqabi: DC14Overberg: DC3
uMzinyathi: DC24Zululand: DC26uThukela: DC23
Sekhukhune: DC47Dr K Kaunda: DC40
Tshwane: TSHuMkhanyakude: DC27
Xhariep: DC16Harry Gwala: DC43
Bojanala Platinum: DC37Capricorn: DC35Sedibeng: DC42
Johannesburg: JHBRS Mompati: DC39
West Rand: DC48N Mandela Bay: NMA
Waterberg: DC36NM Molema: DC38
iLembe: DC29Frances Baard: DC9
Amajuba: DC25
1000 2000 3000 4000 5000
2928
2412
2625
25162425
2566
2642
3778
2518
2608
3173
3432
3685
3553
3894
3158
2536
3047
2953
4732
2995
2419
23522329
2698
2605
2623
3140
2622
3253
28302759
3275
3854
3609
3108
2245
2867
2752
4087
1862
3054
2395
3326
2875
3828
2522
2578
2262
1961
2941
2119
SA: 2803
ProvincesECFSGPKZNLPMPNCNWWC
57
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 19: Expenditure per patient day equivalent by district,
2017/18
-
58
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 20 shows annual trends in provinces per district for the
period 2008/09 to 2017/18. Nelson Mandela district in the Eastern
Cape is the only district in the province with an expenditure per
PDE of R3 000 and above since 2009/10. The reason is that
Uitenhage hospital offers some regional and tertiary hospital
services. The expenditure per PDE in Xhariep district (FS) exceeded
the rest of the districts in the province since 2015/16 and was the
only district in 2017/18 with an expenditure per PDE above
R3 000.
In KwaZulu-Natal the expenditure per PDE of iLembe was much
higher than the rest of the districts since 2013/14 and the
expenditure per PDE of Amajuba increased on average much more than
the rest of the districts since 2015/16. The increase in these two
districts needs to be investigated. The expenditure per PDE of
Frances Baard (NC) was much higher than the rest of the districts
in the province since 2012/13 and had almost double the expenditure
per PDE of the other districts in 2017/18 at R4 087.
-
Annual trends: Expenditure per patient day equivalent (district
hospitals)
Ran
d (re
al p
rices
)
1000
2000
3000
4000
EC FS
● ●
●●
●●
● ●●
●
GP
1000
2000
3000
4000
KZN
●●
●● ●
●●
● ● ●
LP MP
1000
2000
3000
4000
2008
/09
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NC
2008
/09
2009
/10
2010
/11
2011
/12
2012
/13
2013
/14
2014
/15
2015
/16
2016
/17
2017
/18
NW20
08/0
920
09/1
020
10/1
120
11/1
220
12/1
320
13/1
420
14/1
520
15/1
620
16/1
720
17/1
8●
●
●
●●
●●
●●
●
WC
EC A NzoEC AmatholeEC Buffalo CityEC C HaniEC Joe GqabiEC N
Mandela BayEC O TamboEC Sarah BaartmanFS Fezile DabiFS
LejweleputswaFS MangaungFS T MofutsanyanaFS Xhariep
GP City of Ekurhuleni GP Johannesburg GP SedibengGP TshwaneGP
West RandKZN AmajubaKZN eThekwiniKZN Harry GwalaKZN iLembeKZN King
Cetshwayo KZN UguKZN uMgungundlovu KZN uMkhanyakude
KZN uMzinyathi KZN uThukelaKZN ZululandLP CapricornLP MopaniLP
Sekhukhune LP VhembeLP Waterberg MP Ehlanzeni MP G Sibande MP
Nkangala NC Frances Baard NC JT Gaetsewe
NC NamakwaNC Pixley ka SemeNC ZF MgcawuNW Bojanala PlatinumNW Dr
K KaundaNW NM MolemaNW RS MompatiWC Cape TownWC Cape WinelandsWC
Central KarooWC EdenWC OverbergWC West Coast
●
●
●
59
Section A: Inpatient management
Figure 20: Annual trends: expenditure per patient day equivalent
(district hospitals), 2008/09 – 2017/18
Source: DHIS.
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60
Section A: Inpatient management
Twenty-three district hospitals had an expenditure per PDE of
more than R4 000 in 2017/18. Some district hospitals had
unrealistic values for expenditure per PDE of more than
R100 000 which might be due to poor data quality with regard
to financial or inpatient data. There is no specific trend between
the higher expenditure per PDE, IBUR and ALOS to make comparisons
and the high expenditure per PDE needs to be investigated.
Key findings
Inpatient bed utilisation rate:
✦ The national IBUR for district hospitals in 2017/18 was 64.1%
and has been consistently below 70% for the past six years. Western
Cape was the only province with an IBUR above 80% in the same
period. Eastern Cape has had the lowest rate among the provinces
since 2012/13.
✦ The three districts with the lowest IBUR were from Northern
Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape, namely, Frances Baard (NC)
(36.5%), King Cetshwayo (KZN) (42.3%) and Chris Hani (EC) (45.5%).
Only 25 districts (48.1%) had an IBUR that exceeded the national
average of 64.1%.
✦ Only two districts had an increase of more than 10 percentage
points between 2013/14 – 2017/18, namely Amajuba (KZN) (19.7
percentage points) and Capricorn (Limpopo (LP)) (23.3 percentage
points).
✦ Nine districts had a decrease of more than 10 percentage
points between 2013/14 – 2017/18, with the highest dec-rease in
Zwelentlanga Fatman Mgcawu (NC) (31.2 percentage points).
✦ Of the district hospitals with an IBUR below 40% in 2017/18,
the majority were in the Eastern Cape (13), Free State (five),
Northern Cape (four) and KwaZulu-Natal (two).
Average length of stay:
✦ The national ALOS decreased annually from 4.7 days in 2013/14
to 4.3 days in 2017/18.
✦ KwaZulu-Natal had the longest ALOS at 5.4 days followed by
Eastern Cape at 4.9 days. These provinces have mostly rural
districts with specific challenges. Reasons for this might be that
patients are not discharged when they should be due to a shortage
of doctors, or that patients discharged do not have transport to go
home. Another reason might be that patients admitted in district
hospitals with dedicated tuberculosis and psychiatric wards usually
have longer stays in hospital.
✦ The ALOS in the Northern Cape, Free State and Western Cape was
on average three days shorter than in KwaZulu-Natal and two days
shorter than in the Eastern Cape.
✦ uMzinyati (KZN) had the longest ALOS at 6.3 days and Namakwa
(NC) had the shortest ALOS at 2.6 days. Of the 25 districts with an
ALOS longer than the national average of 4.3 days, 11 were
districts in KwaZulu-Natal and six of the eight districts in
Eastern Cape.
✦ Only two hospitals with a long ALOS also had low IBUR, namely
Mjanyana Hospital in Chris Hani (EC) and St Lucy’s Hospital in OR
Tambo (EC).
OPD new client not referred rate:
✦ The national OPD new client not referred rate declined from
64.1% in 2012/13 to 58.4% in 2015/16 but then increased to 59.3% in
2016/17 and to 60.4% in 2017/18.
✦ Western Cape was the province with the lowest OPD new client
not referred rate at 13.6% in 2017/18. The OPD new client not
referred rate for the other provinces ranged between 50.4% in
KwaZulu-Natal to 72.4% in Limpopo.
✦ The five districts with the highest OPD new client not
referred rate were Waterberg (LP) (83.6%), Frances Baard (NC)
(81.7%), Sekhukhune (LP) (81.1%), Thabo Mofutsanyana (FS) (80.5%)
and Tshwane (GP) (75.6%).
✦ Twenty-one district hospitals had an OPD new client not
referred rate above 90%. In three hospitals all clients seen at the
OPD/casualty unit bypass the PHC facilities and access the
hospitals directly for PHC services. These hospitals were in Joe
Gqabi (EC), Capricorn (LP) and Pixley Ka Seme (NC) districts.
Inpatient crude death rate:
✦ The national inpatient crude death rate decreased annually
from 5.8% in 2012/13 to 4.8% in 2017/18.
✦ The province with the highest inpatient crude death rate was
Eastern Cape (6.2%) followed by North West (NW) (6.1%). Eastern
Cape had the second longest ALOS (4.9 days) as well as the second
lowest IBUR (54.7%) among the provinces.
✦ The five districts with the highest inpatient crude death rate
were Chris Hani (EC) (6.9%), Joe Gqabi (EC) (6.9%), OR Tambo (EC)
(6.5%), Nkangala (MP) (6.5%) and Fezile Dabi (FS) (6.4%).
✦ Twenty district hospitals had an inpatient crude death rate of
more than eight per cent in 2017/18. Twelve of the 20 hospitals
were in the Eastern Cape, four in North West and three in the Free
State.
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61
Section A: Inpatient management
Expenditure per patient day equivalent:
✦ The national expenditure per PDE for district hospitals
increased from R2 362 in 2012/13 to R2 803 in
2017/18.
✦ The province with the highest expenditure per PDE was North
West at R3 495 and Western Cape had the lowest expenditure per
PDE at R2 450.
✦ Twenty-three district hospitals had an expenditure per PDE of
more than R4 000 in 2017/18. Some district hospitals had
unrealistic values for expenditure per PDE of more than R100 000
and it might be due to poor data quality with regard to financial
or inpatient data. This resulted in incorrect expenditure per PDEs
by district, province and national levels. There is no specific
trend between the higher expenditure per PDE, IBUR and ALOS to make
comparisons and the high expenditure per PDE needs to be
investigated.
General:
✦ Poor data quality might be the reason for some of the
relatively high or low inpatient indicator values and effects
decision-making and inpatient management.
Recommendations ✦ To improve the quality of data, the data
collection tools for hospitals that do not use an electronic data
collection
system should be standardised.
✦ The low IBUR and long ALOS at some hospitals should be
investigated and proper actions taken to address the abnormal
trends.
✦ The District Health System must be strengthened to enable all
patients to first receive primary care at a clinic or health centre
where initial diagnosis and treatments are conducted.
✦ The District Health Management Offices together with the
district hospital management, must work on plans to discourage the
use OPD and emergency units for PHC services and treatment of minor
ailments.
✦ The district hospitals must do outreach services to support
the local primary health care facilities. This can be done by
working together with the District Clinical Specialist Teams, where
they are available.
✦ The relatively high inpatient crude death rate at some
hospitals should be investigated.
✦ Reasons for the unrealistic values for expenditure per PDE at
some hospitals should be determined and be corrected.
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62
Section A: Inpatient management