Direct costs of drug therapy in family medicine
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32385/rpmgf.v18i6.9893Keywords:
Drugs, Hypertension, Diabetes, Depression, Costs, HyperlipidaemiaAbstract
Objectives: To determine the direct costs of pharmacological therapy, per patient and diagnosis, in a primary care ambulatory setting. Type of study: descriptive cross-sectional study. Setting: primary care sugery of a general practitioner in an urban and sub-urban location in the centre of Portugal. Methods: In 24 consecutive work days from June to July 2001, data about daily prescriptions were obtained. These data were brand name, dose and diagnosis for prescription. Diagnoses were coded through the «Tables for Coding Health Problems» from the Coimbra Health Region and drugs designated according to their International Common Denomination (ICD). Direct costs were calculated according to the retail prices issued in the «Portuguese Therapeutic Prontuary, 2001» in euros. Results and conclusions: We found that a prescription was issued in 68,4% of all consultations, with 2,2±1,3 diagnoses per patient. There were 2,6±1,6 ICDs per patient and 4,6±5,8 ICDs per diagnosis. We estimated a cost of _1,6±2,0 per day per patient. The elevated number of ICDs prescribed may limit its optimal use. It will be the prevalence of the health problem to determine the direct cost of treatment and not prescribing inDownloads
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