Effects of a Dementia Screening Program on Healthcare Utilization in South Korea: A Difference-In-Difference Analysis

Abstract

To determine whether Seoul’s dementia screening program increased the rate of diagnosis and the appropriate use of healthcare services for people with dementia, a retrospective data analysis was conducted based on administrative data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. Two cohorts were constructed to represent the year before Seoul’s dementia screening program began (2007) (control group) and the year after the implementation of the program (2009) (treatment group). A difference-in-difference analysis was used to compare the diagnosis rates, number of clinic visits, and dementia-related drug prescription rates for 4 districts that implemented dementia screening programs between 2007 and 2009 and 14 areas that did not. After the introduction of the program, there was a 55.4% increase in physician-diagnosed dementia. The “average drug cost per patient” increased by 52.2% (Exp(β) = 1.522, p = 0.0264), the “average outpatient visits per patient” tended to increase by 13.5% (Exp(β) = 1.135, p = 0.1852), and the “average outpatient treatment fees per visit per patient” tended to increase by 24.4% (Exp(β) = 1.244, p = 0.0821). The implementation of dementia screening programs led to an increase in healthcare service utilization. Therefore, this program was found to be an effective strategy for reducing undiagnosed dementia cases and encouraging patients to use adequate healthcare services.

Dementia Management Act and Death Toll by Dementia Drug

“…Psychiatrists or neurologists of medical institutions engaged in medical diagnosis and treatment under the Medical Service Act 24 . They strengthened the dementia management programs that administer AAD to mild cognitive impairments or delirium as a preventive and treatment [25][26][27][28][29] . They insisted that the 1-year persistence rate of ChEIs for AD patients should be specially monitored to optimize treatment persistence because patients are less likely to remain on therapy than those in other countries 26 .…”

Dementia Management Act and Death Toll by Dementia Drug

“…Psychiatrists or neurologists of medical institutions engaged in medical diagnosis and treatment under the Medical Service Act 34 . They strengthened the dementia management programs that administer AAD to MCI or delirium as a preventive and treatment [35][36][37][38][39] .…”

Death Toll by Dementia Drug

“…Psychiatrists or neurologists of medical institutions engaged in medical diagnosis and treatment under the Medical Service Act 34 . They strengthened the dementia management programs that administer AAD to MCI or delirium as a preventive and treatment [35][36][37][38][39] . They insisted that the 1-year persistence rate of ChEIs for AD patients should be specially monitored to optimise treatment persistence because patients are less likely to remain on therapy than those in other countries 36 .…”