Accounting Forum March 2018: Inpatient unit cost by using Activity based Costing
Accounting Forum for 2018 is a series of academic events that are conducted regularly to discuss various topics in Accounting and its related disciplines. The purpose of this event is to encourage academic environment by stimulating critical thinking and discussing current topics in accounting. It is scheduled to run regularly at least once a month during a year. First topic to be discussed in this year is inpatient unit cost by using activity based costing (ABC) that was held on 26 March 2018 at 4th Floor Hall, Building C. Panelists for this event were Dr Warsito Kawedar and Zahra Ayu. They shared their research experience regarding application of ABC in calculating unit cost for inpatient at a hospital, i.e. Rumah Sakit Nasional Diponegoro (RSND). They found that current practices in calculating patient unit cost by using conventional approach have distorted patient cost either downward or upward. For instances, unit cost for first class is too low but VIP class is too high. In other words, the utilization of ABC will enhance costing accuracy that eventually will support competitive advantages. There are many challenges and factors that must be considered in application of this approach such as seeking cost drivers. But the benefit is outweighs the cost. Participants of this forum were very enthusiastic to involve in the discussion by asking intriguing questions such as challenges and complexity of ABC application in hospital.