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Microlesson · 5-min read

Hospital Industry Costing

# Hospital Industry Costing

## Cost Unit

For hospitals, the cost unit is cost per bed per day.

## Methodology

The calculation approach is the same as for hotels:

1. Different categories of beds (e.g., General Ward, Semi-Private, Private, ICU) may carry different cost ratios.

2. Convert all beds into Equivalent Beds using the ratios.

3. Cost per Equivalent Bed =

$$\frac{\text{Total Cost}}{\text{Total Equivalent Beds}}$$

4. Multiply by the category ratio to find cost for each category of bed.

## Key Difference vs Hotel

Only the cost unit terminology changes — from 'room per day' to 'bed per day'. The underlying method (equivalent units approach) is identical.

## Other Considerations in Hospital Costing

  • Occupancy rate of beds (similar to bus occupancy)
  • Separate cost for departments (OPD, IPD, ICU, OT, Pathology, etc.)
  • Distinction between fixed costs (salaries, rent, depreciation of building/equipment) and variable costs (medicines, food, utilities consumed per patient)

Worked example

### Example 1

Example:

A hospital has 100 general beds (ratio 1) and 20 ICU beds (ratio 3). Total annual cost = ₹73,00,000. Operating days = 365.

Equivalent Beds = (100 × 1) + (20 × 3) = 160

Cost per Equivalent Bed per year = ₹73,00,000 / 160 ≈ ₹45,625

Cost per Equivalent Bed per day = ₹45,625 / 365 ≈ ₹125

  • Cost per General Bed per day = ₹125 × 1 = ₹125
  • Cost per ICU Bed per day = ₹125 × 3 = ₹375

⚠️ Common exam mistakes

  • Treating all beds as identical when ratios for different categories are given
  • Forgetting to convert annual cost into per-day cost
  • Ignoring occupancy / vacancy of beds while computing average cost per occupied bed-day
  • Not separating fixed and variable costs when the question requires the break-up
Reference:
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