Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to assess the medical treatment and medical and sanitary materials provided to patients under home care in Japan using data from the National Database of Health Insurance Claims and Specific Health Checkups of Japan (NDB) and to analyze the associations with the number and type of medical services that are made available at home for these patients.
Methods: Data on the reimbursement for home medical care management guidance, additional reimbursement for home medical care management guidance materials and provision of sanitary materials, and use of home medical care services were extracted from the NDB Open Data 2018, Standardized Claim Ratio 2018, and e-Stat (a portal site for Japanese governmental statistics). Correlational analyses were performed.
Results: Many patients under home care needed self-injection or continuous positive airway pressure. It was estimated that in most cases, medical and sanitary materials were provided to these patients. The amount of reimbursement for home medical care management guidance differed between regions, depending on the number of clinics and hospitals providing home care support, the number of home-visit nursing stations, and the extent of home medical services provided, such as home-visit medical care and home-visit nursing in each prefecture.
Discussion: In the future, patients who need home care services will require greater support and higher reimbursements. It is important to further increase and improve the quality of home care support and services provided by healthcare institutions and service providers.
