Use of diagnosis related groups for hospital management.

This paper gives an overview on the use of Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs) for internal hospital management. Some figures derived from a comparative study between 3 university hospitals in Belgium are used to illustrate specific points. Attention is given to cost accounting and cost control on the one hand, and utilization review and quality assurance testing on the other. Costs have been approximated by billed charges. It is concluded that DRGs can effectively be used for hospital management, in addition to hospital financing for which some pressure also exists in Europe.