A decision support system for diagnosis related groups coding

This study demonstrates that the utilization of a computer-aided decision support system (DSS) for diagnosis related groups (DRGs) coding called DRG-DSS, can both help coders to increase their coding quality and also reduce the time required to train them. However, an information system is of no real value if its intended users are not prepared to avail themselves of it. A quasi-experiment was conducted to evaluate the performance of the DRG-DSS in a hospital. Twelve DRGs coders were recruited and randomly assigned to experimental or control group to code 180 respiratory cases. Both object and subject-based indicators were used to measure the performance of DRG-DSS through a two-stage evaluation process. The results show that the DRG-DSS can effectively enhance the coding quality and all the users had a positive attitude with respect to the system’s perceived ease of use and usefulness. Following presentation of the research findings, their implications and limitations are discussed, along with suggestions for future work.