Background: Studies show that patients want to engage in cost-of-care conversations and factor costs into the formulation of care plans. Low-income patients are particularly likely to defer care because of costs, suggesting that cost-of-care conversations may be an important factor in health equity. Little guidance is available to clinicians and health systems for how to integrate effective cost-of-care conversations into clinical practice or to address specific cost needs of low-income patients.
Objective: To develop a framework and tool to assist cost-of-care conversations with low-income patients during prenatal care.
Design: A qualitative study using human-centered design methods.
Setting: University medical center-based obstetrics-gynecology (ob-gyn) practice.
Participants: 20 pregnant or recently postpartum women, 16 clinicians, and 8 support and executive staff.
Results: Pregnant women accumulate substantial indirect costs that interfere with treatment adherence and stress patients and their relationships. Frequency and duration of appointments are primary drivers of indirect costs; the burden is exacerbated by not knowing these costs in advance and disproportionately affects low-income patients. Working with ob-gyn clinicians, staff, and patients, a paper-based tool was developed to help patients forecast treatment demands and indirect costs, and to help clinicians introduce and standardize cost conversations.
Limitations: Data were collected from a small number of stakeholders in a single clinical setting that may not be generalizable to other settings. The tool has not been tested for effects on adherence or clinical outcomes.
Conclusion: A communication tool that helps pregnant patients understand their care plan and anticipate indirect costs can promote cost-of-care conversations between clinicians and low-income patients.
Primary funding source: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.