In-Patient vs Out-Patient Care

What is in-patient care?

In-patient care is given when someone stays overnight in hospital, even for a single night. Some in-patient care can last for weeks or even months.

With in-patient care, the patient will receive a bed in the hospital, with overnight monitoring from doctors and nurses, and a course of ongoing treatments.

In-patient care is essential after major surgery to ensure a full recovery. Life and limb-threatening accidents and illnesses may also require in-patient care. Childbirth is another situation that usually requires in-patient care, with both the mother and child placed under observation.

As an in-patient, you may be given a structured recovery programme, which doctors and nurses will help you to complete while you stay in hospital. All drugs will be administered by healthcare professionals.

What is out-patient care?

Out-patient care, also known as ambulatory care, doesn’t require a hospital stay, as the patient usually recovers at home.

As an out-patient, you will usually be discharged soon after treatment. You will be given a structured recovery programme to complete at home, with drugs or treatment apparatus given to you to administer yourself.

You are likely to be treated as an out-patient for routine medical procedures, treatments for minor diseases and injuries, and minor surgery.

Out-patient care is often the preferred option for both parties, because it puts less strain on a hospital’s resources while the patient gets to recover in the comfort of their own home.

What are the differences between in-patient and out-patient care?

What determines if you need in-patient or out-patient care?

This will depend on whether you need monitoring by doctors and nurses during your stay in hospital.

This is likely to be the case if you are admitted to intensive care, or if you have had major surgery. You might also need in-patient care for a serious acute or chronic illness, such as cancer or kidney disease.

Out-patient treatment, meanwhile, is for minor surgery like removal of cataracts or moles, minor diagnostic tests like blood tests and X-rays, and physiotherapy.

Some treatments might be provided on an in-patient or out-patient basis depending on the circumstances. You might be able to receive chemotherapy or dialysis treatment as an out-patient, for example.

There’s also a third category, day-patient care. If you’re treated as a day-patient, you’ll be given a hospital bed while you recover from your treatment, but you won’t stay overnight.

What are examples of in-patient care?

Some situations in which you might be given treatment as an in-patient include:

What are examples of out-patient care?

The kinds of treatment where you’re unlikely to be kept overnight include:

In-patient vs out-patient costs

Not surprisingly, in-patient care costs more than out-patient care.

Not only do the kinds of procedures requiring you to stay as an in-patient tend to cost more (cancer treatment is far more expensive than minor surgery, for example), you must also take into account the cost of your hospital stay.

This adds bills for hospital admin, pharmacy costs, and paying for the service of doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals who attend to you overnight.

One study in 2017 found that the average cost of knee surgery in the USA requiring in-patient care was US$46,845. The same surgery performed on an out-patient basis was just US$26,345 – a saving of over US$20,000, and just 43% of the original price. That goes to show the vast difference in expenses between in-patient vs out-patient treatment.

As an expat, the difference between in-patient and out-patient treatment could have a considerable impact on your expat health insurance policy. The higher costs of in-patient care may mean that you end up paying a higher excess, for instance.

Worse still, if you don’t have international health insurance, you may find yourself paying huge hospital fees out-of-pocket.

Does William Russell provide insurance for both in-patient and out-patient care?

All William Russell plans offer cover for inpatient and outpatient treatment. Cover limits vary depending on which plan you choose.

Bronze, SilverLite, Silver and Gold plans provide full cover for hospital treatment.

All plans also offer cover for:

1. Primary medical care
2. Physiotherapy
3. Acute flare ups of chronic conditions

The level of cover depends on the plan and the options you choose.

Selected plans offer cover for:

1. Hormone replacement therapy
2. Traditional Chinese medicine
3. Monitoring and maintenance of chronic conditions

Again, the level of cover depends on your choice of plan.