To test the effect of differences in acquisition cost and budget-based monetary compensation systems on the intent to support the adoption of a cost-effective new drug, over 350 hospital pharmacy directors were asked to indicate their intentions as to the adoption of a cost-effective new...

Objective: The objective of this study was to estimate the annual resource use and corresponding costs (at 1996/97 prices) to the UK's National Health Service (NHS) arising from the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Design and Setting: A subgroup analysis was performed...

Many health maintenance organisations (HMOs) and provider organisations are developing disease management programmes to improve quality of care and lower costs for patients with chronic diseases. Many of these organisations ultimately decide to outsource these programmes to vendors rather than...

Objective: Disease management can be described as a data-driven care process across the continuum from symptom perception through to diagnosis and treatment. In order to effectively manage this medical-care process, the practitioner must understand the epidemiology of the disease, and nature of...

Objective: The purpose of this study was 3-fold: (i) to determine the distribution of US patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and requiring a hospitalisation in the calendar year 1988 or 1992, by primary payer type (Medicare; Medicaid; or private insurance); (ii) to discern the mean inpatient...

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of the pharmacotherapeutic circle (PTC), a general practitioner (GP) prescribing-improvement programme to enhance prescribing quality and reduce drug costs. Design: Combined pre- and post-intervention time-series design using an internal comparison of...

Objective: To investigate the relationship between cognitive impairment, measured with the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), and the cost of care. Design: The study uses data from the Kungsholmen project, a population-based study in Sweden in which people 75 years and older were observed...

Objective: To determine the cost effectiveness of enoxaparin therapy versus unfractionated heparin (UFH) therapy for patients with unstable coronary artery disease from the perspective of a Canadian hospital. Design: A predictive decision analysis model using published clinical and economic...

Meropenem is a carbapenem antibiotic which is active against the majority of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria implicated in serious infections. Its therapeutic efficacy in a wide range of serious infections is similar to that of imipenem/cilastatin and standard combination drug regimens. Hence,...

Standard price indices may not account for the price decrease that results when patients switch to pharmaceutical products for which their demand-reservation price exceeds the price of the new product. In a similar way, standard price indices may not account for the price increase that results...