Special Articles 204 Psychosomatics 42:3, May-June 2001 Care Complexity in the General Hospital Results From a European Study

There is increasing pressure to effectively treat patients with complex care needs from the mo-ment of admission to the general hospital. In this study, the authors developed a measurement strategy for hospital-based care complexity. The authors ’ four-factor model describes the interre-lations between complexity indicators, highlighting differences between length of stay (LOS), ob-jective complexity (such as medications or consultations), complexity ratings by the nurse, and complexity ratings by the doctor. Their findings illustrate limitations in the use of LOS as a sole indicator for care complexity. The authors show how objective and subjective complexity indica