Clinical and cost effectiveness of issuing longer versus shorter duration (3 month vs. 28 day) prescriptions in patients with chronic conditions: systematic review and economic modelling

Miani, C�line; Martin, Adam; Exley, Josephine; Doble, Brett; Wilson, Ed; Payne, Rupert; Avery, Anthony; Meads, Catherine; Kirtley, Anne; Morgan Jones, Molly; King, Sarah

Abstract

Background: To reduce expenditure on, and wastage of, drugs, some commissioners have encouraged general practitioners to issue shorter prescriptions, typically 28 days in length; however, the evidence base for this recommendation is uncertain.
Objective: To evaluate the evidence of the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of shorter versus longer prescriptions for people with stable chronic conditions treated in primary care.
Design/data sources: The design of the study comprised three elements. First, a systematic review comparing 28-day prescriptions with longer prescriptions in patients with chronic conditions treated in primary care, evaluating any relevant clinical outcomes, adherence to treatment, costs and cost-effectiveness. Databases searched included MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Web of Science and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Searches were from database inception to October 2015 (updated search to June 2016 in PubMed). Second, a cost analysis of medication wastage associated with

Citation

Miani, C., Martin, A., Exley, J., Doble, B., Wilson, E., Payne, R., …King, S. (2017). Clinical and cost effectiveness of issuing longer versus shorter duration (3 month vs. 28 day) prescriptions in patients with chronic conditions: systematic review and economic modelling. Health Technology Assessment, 21(78), https://doi.org/10.3310/hta21780

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 1, 2017
• Publication Date: Dec 21, 2017
• Deposit Date: Jan 4, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 4, 2018
• Journal: Health Technology Assessment
• Print ISSN: 1366-5278
• Electronic ISSN: 1366-5278
• Publisher: NIHR Journals Library
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 21
• Issue: 78
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3310/hta21780
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/901562
• Publisher URL: https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/hta/hta21780/#/abstract