Initiatives in Prospective Payment Systems Based on Diagnosis Procedure Combination

The Prospective Payment System (PPS) based on a patient’s diagnosis procedure combination (DPC) was introduced in 82 technologically advanced hospitals nationwide in Japan in April 2003. This system was later expanded to private general hospitals that offer acute care, bringing the number of participating institutions to 1557 in fiscal year 2009. As a top vendor in the healthcare system market, Fujitsu has participated in the study and operation of PPS from the beginning and supported the smooth introduction of DPC. We have developed a DPC analysis system that organizes and compiles the necessary information from a large amount of DPC data into databases. This allows hospital management to easily retrieve useful statistical data. This tool helps medical institutions in their efforts to make full use of DPC data and to improve medical service quality and service efficiency. This paper provides an overview of PPS and how to use the DPC analysis system for administrative improvement. It also mentions how Fujitsu has worked on benchmarking between hospitals.