BackgroundDespite the high prevalence and major public health ramifications, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) remains underdiagnosed. In many developed countries, because community pharmacists (CP) are easily accessible, they have been developing additional clinical services that integrate the services of and collaborate with other healthcare providers (general practitioners (GPs), nurses, etc.). Alternative strategies for primary care screening programs for OSAS involving the CP are discussed.ObjectiveTo estimate the quality of life, costs, and cost-effectiveness of three screening strategies among patients who are at risk of having moderate to severe OSAS in primary care.DesignMarkov decision model.Data SourcesPublished data.Target PopulationHypothetical cohort of 50-year-old male patients with symptoms highly evocative of OSAS.Time HorizonThe 5 years after initial evaluation for OSAS.PerspectiveSocietal.InterventionsScreening strategy with CP (CP-GP collaboration), screening strategy without CP (GP alone) and no screening.Outcomes measuresQuality of life, survival and costs for each screening strategy.Results of base-case analysisUnder almost all modeled conditions, the involvement of CPs in OSAS screening was cost effective. The maximal incremental cost for “screening strategy with CP” was about 455€ per QALY gained.Results of sensitivity analysisOur results were robust but primarily sensitive to the treatment costs by continuous positive airway pressure, and the costs of untreated OSAS. The probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that the “screening strategy with CP” was dominant in 80% of cases. It was more effective and less costly in 47% of cases, and within the cost-effective range (maximum incremental cost effectiveness ratio at €6186.67/QALY) in 33% of cases.ConclusionsCP involvement in OSAS screening is a cost-effective strategy. This proposal is consistent with the trend in Europe and the United States to extend the practices and responsibilities of the pharmacist in primary care.

Home-based SCIg including an interprofessional therapy management program may be an efficient alternative for patients. The program provides long-term support from self-administration training to the responsible use of therapy (proper adherence, optimal efficacy and safety). Over the short term, additional costs from purchasing equipment and the drug therapy management program were offset by avoiding hospital costs.

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BackgroundIn the last decades, the provision of pharmaceutical care by community pharmacists has developed in OECD countries. These developments involved significant changes in professional practices and organization of primary care. In France, they have recently been encouraged by a new legal framework and favored by an increasing demand for health care (increase in the number of patients with chronic diseases) and reductions in services being offered (reduction in the number of general practitioners and huge regional disparities).Objectives: This study aimed to investigate final-year pharmacy students' opinions on 1/expanding the scope of pharmacists' practices and 2/the potential barriers for the implementation of pharmaceutical care. We discussed these in the light of the experiences of pharmacists in Quebec, and other countries in Europe (United Kingdom and the Netherlands).MethodsAll final-year students in pharmaceutical studies, preparing to become community pharmacists, at the University Paris-Descartes in Paris during 2010 (n = 146) were recruited. All of them were interviewed by means of a questionnaire describing nine "professional" practices by pharmacists, arranged in four dimensions: (1) screening and chronic disease management, (2) medication surveillance, (3) pharmacy-prescribed medication and (4) participation in health care networks. Respondents were asked (1) how positively they view the extension of their current practices, using a 5 point Likert scale and (2) their perception of potential professional, technical, organizational and/or financial obstacles to developing these practices.Results143 (97.9%) students completed the questionnaire. Most of practices studied received a greater than 80% approval rating, although only a third of respondents were in favor of the sales of over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. The most significant perceived barriers were working time, remuneration and organizational problems, specifically the need to create a physical location for consultations to respect patients' privacy within a pharmacy.ConclusionsDespite remaining barriers to cross, this study showed that future French pharmacists were keen to develop their role in patient care, beyond the traditional role of dispensing. However, the willingness of doctors and patients to consent should be investigated and also rigorous studies to support or refute the positive impact of pharmaceutical care on the quality of care should be carried out.

Objective To describe how longitudinal continuity of care (COC) is measured using claims-based data and to review its association with healthcare use and costs. Research design Rapid review of the literature. Methods We searched Medline (PubMed), EMBASE and Cochrane Central, manually checked the references of included studies, and hand-searched websites for potentially additional eligible studies. Results We included 46 studies conducted in North America, East Asia and Europe, which used 14 COC indicators. Most reported studies (39/46) showed that higher COC was associated with lower healthcare use and costs. Most studies (37/46) adjusted for possible time bias and discussed causality between the outcomes and COC, or at least acknowledged the lack of it as a limitation. Conclusions Whereas a wide range of indicators is used to measure COC in claims-based data, associations between COC and healthcare use and costs were consistent, showing lower healthcare use and costs with higher COC. Results were observed in various population groups from multiple countries and settings. Further research is needed to make stronger causal claims.

Purpose To compare the cost of two patient management strategies with similar efficacies for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) patients in the chronic phase: hospital-based IV immunoglobulin G (IVIg) and home-based subcutaneous immunoglobulin G (SCIg) associated with an interprofessional drug therapy management programme (initial training and follow-up). Methods A 48-week model-based cost-minimization analysis from a societal perspective was performed. Resources included immunoglobulin (IVIg: 1 g/kg/3 weeks; SCIg: 0.4 g/kg/week initially and 0.2 g/kg/week in the maintenance phase), hospital charges, time of professionals, infusion material, transport and losses of productivity for patients. Costs were expressed in Swiss francs (CHF) (1 CHF = 0.93€ = US$1.10, www.xe.com, 2020/10/28). Results The total costs of IVIg were higher than those of SCIg for health insurance and other payers: 114,747 CHF versus 86,558 CHF and 8,762 CHF versus 2,401 CHF, respectively. The results were sensitive to the immunoglobulin doses, as this was the main cost driver. The SCIg daily cost in the initial phase was higher for health insurance than hospital-based IVIg was, but the additional costs were compensated during the maintenance phase (from week 28). The professional costs associated with the switch were not fully covered by the insurance and were borne by the pharmacist and the nurse. Conclusions SCIg for CIDP patients reinforced by an interprofessional drug therapy management programme may be a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to IVIg in the Swiss system context. From an economic perspective, this therapy alternative should be more widely supported by healthcare systems and proposed to eligible patients by professionals.

Les auteurs remercient vivement Anne Legal pour son aide dans le traitement des données, ainsi que Sandy Tubeuf, Thomas Buchmueller, les participants aux 30º Journées des économistes de la santé Français (

et deux rapporteurs anonymes pour les remarques et commentaires qu'ils nous ont faits sur ce travail. Nous restons toutefois seuls responsables des éventuelles erreurs et insuffisances.