The Impact of COVID-19 Regulatory Reporting Burden: A Comparative Study of a Small Independent Hospital and a Large Network Hospital (Preprint)

BACKGROUND During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, hospitals encountered numerous challenges that compounded their difficulties. Some of these challenges directly impacted patient care, such as the need to expand capacities, adjust services, and utilize new knowledge to save lives in an ever-evolving situation. Additionally, hospitals faced regulatory challenges. OBJECTIVE Objective: This article presents the findings of a qualitative study that compares the effects of reporting requirements on a small independent hospital (SIH) and a large, networked hospital (LNH) during the pandemic. METHODS Methods: We employed both quantitative and qualitative analyses. The researchers conducted a total of 51 interviews, which were thematically analyzed. We quantified the changes in regulatory reporting requirements over the first 14 months of the pandemic. RESULTS Results: These requirements placed a significant time burden on key clinical personnel at the SIH, consequently reducing the time available for patient care. Conversely, the LNH had dedicated non-clinical staff responsible for reporting duties, and their robust health information system facilitated this work. CONCLUSIONS Conclusions: The discrepancy in health information technology (HIT) capabilities suggests that there may be significant institutional inequities affecting smaller hospitals' ability to respond to a pandemic and adequately support public health efforts. The healthcare policy implications of these findings are discussed. CLINICALTRIAL NA