CE Hospital Service Utilization is Reduced Following Neuropsychological Evaluation in a Sample of US Veterans

The aim of this study was to evaluate the objective value of neuropsychological evaluation (NPE) through reduction in Emergency Room (ER) visits and hospitalizations. Retrospective analysis examined trends in ER visits and hospitalizations in 440 U.S. veterans who completed NPE between the years of 2003 and 2010. Within-subjects comparisons showed significant decreases in incidence of hospitalization and length of hospitalization in the year after evaluation compared to the year prior. Mean number of hospitalizations declined from 0.31 (SD = 0.64) pre-NPE to 0.22 (SD = 0.59) post-NPE; there were a total of 41 fewer hospitalizations in the year following NPE. Mean length of hospitalization decreased from 1.9 days (SD = 5.6) pre-NPE to 1.06 days (SD = 3.9) post-NPE; there were a total of 368 fewer days of hospitalization post-NPE. This reduction was not attributable to age or time. Incidence of ER visits also decreased from pre-NPE (M = 0.74, SD = 1.3) to post-evaluation (M = 0.69, SD = 1.3), though this was not significant. These findings provide preliminary evidence of the clinical and potential economic value of neuropsychological services within a medical setting. Follow-up studies should examine individual and exam-specific factors that may contribute to reduced utilization.