115 Time-driven Activity-based Costing for ACDF: An Automated and Scalable Solution

INTRODUCTION: Understanding the true (intraoperative) cost to the hospital when neurosurgeons perform anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is critical as we move towards value-based purchasing. METHODS: Total cost was divided into direct and indirect costs. Individual costs were obtained by direct observation, electronic medical records, and through querying multiple departments (business operations, sterile processing, plant operations, and pharmacy). Timestamps for all involved personnel and material resources were documented. Total intraoperative costs were estimated for all ACDFs from 2017 and 2022. RESULTS: A total of 959 patients underwent anterior cervical fusions between 2017 and 2022 (one-level: n = 400, 41.7%; two-level: n = 407, 42.4%; three-level: n = 139, 14.5%; greater than three-level: n = 13, 1.4%). The most common pre-operative diagnosis was myelopathy (n=586, 61.1%), followed by radiculopathy (n = 256, 26.7%). The average total intraoperative cost per case was $5,970 ± $2,137; $7,542 ± $3,119; $8,958 ± $3,096; and $9,297 ± $2,633 for one-, two-, three-, and greater than three-level fusions, respectively. The major cost contributors were supply costs ($4,745, 66%) and personnel costs ($2,417; 34%). Total intraoperative costs displayed more variation with two-level ACDFs as compared to other fusions. Total supply cost, particularly implant cost ($3,399 ± $2,161), followed by total personnel cost (2,417 ± $917) was responsible for most of the observed total cost variability across all anterior cervical fusions. CONCLUSIONS: TDABC is a feasible and scalable methodology for understanding the true intraoperative costs of ACDF, without having to rely on proprietary third-party software. The most common reason for surgery was myelopathy, followed by radiculopathy. The major cost contributors were supply and personnel costs. Two-level ACDFs appeared to display more total cost variability as compared to other fusions. Implant costs, followed by personnel costs, appeared to be responsible for cost variation across all anterior cervical fusions.