Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease case finding by community pharmacists: A potential cost-effective public health intervention

Wright, David; Twigg, Michael; Thornley, Tracey

Abstract

Objectives This study aims to pilot a community pharmacy chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) case finding service in England, estimating costs and effects. Methods Patients potentially at risk of COPD were screened with validated tools. Smoking cessation was offered to all smokers identified as potentially having undiagnosed COPD. Cost and effects of the service were estimated. Key findings Twenty-one community pharmacies screened 238 patients over 9 months. One hundred thirty-five patients were identified with potentially undiagnosed COPD; 88 were smokers. Smoking cessation initiation provided a project gain of 38.62 life years, 19.92 quality-adjusted life years and a cost saving of £392.67 per patient screened. Conclusions COPD case finding by community pharmacists potentially provides cost-savings and improves quality of life.

Citation

Wright, D., Twigg, M., & Thornley, T. (2015). Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease case finding by community pharmacists: A potential cost-effective public health intervention. International Journal of Pharmacy Practice, 23(1), 83-85. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijpp.12161

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 11, 2014
• Online Publication Date: Nov 5, 2014
• Publication Date: Feb 1, 2015
• Deposit Date: Jan 16, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 18, 2023
• Journal: International Journal of Pharmacy Practice
• Print ISSN: 0961-7671
• Electronic ISSN: 2042-7174
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 23
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 83-85
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/ijpp.12161
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/15939878
• Publisher URL: https://academic.oup.com/ijpp/article/23/1/83/6101811