Assessing Outcomes for Cost-Utility Analysis in Children and Adolescents With Mental Health Problems: Are Multiattribute Utility Instruments Fit for Purpose?

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to compare the concurrent and construct validity, as well as the sensitivity of 5 multiattribute utility instruments (MAUIs), including the Assessment of Quality of Life-6D (AQoL-6D), EQ-5D-Y, Health Utilities Index (HUI)-2 and HUI-3, and the Child Health Utility 9D, 1 generic pediatric quality of life instrument, with 3 routinely collected outcome measures in Australian mental health services (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, Clinical Global Assessment Scale [CGAS] and the Health of the Nation Outcome Scale for Children and Adolescents) in children and adolescents diagnosed of internalizing (eg, anxiety/depression), externalizing (eg, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder/conduct disorders), and trauma/stress related mental disorders. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of measures, including demographic and basic treatment information, in children/adolescents recruited via 5 child and youth mental health services in Queensland and Victoria, Australia. Measures were either proxy or self-report completed, the CGAS and the Health of the Nation Outcome Scale for Children and Adolescents were clinician completed. RESULTS: The sample included 426 participants and had a mean age of 13.7 years (range 7-18 years). Utilities (as calculated from MAUIs) were generally lower in older adolescents and those with internalizing disorders. All MAUIs and self-reported clinical measures significantly correlated with each other (absolute correlation range 0.40-0.90), with the AQoL-6D showing generally higher levels of correlations. Correlations between the MAUIs and clinician/proxy-reported measures were weak, regardless of diagnosis (absolute correlation range 0.09-0.47). Generally, EQ-5D-Y, HUI-2, and AQoL-6D were more sensitive than Child Health Utility 9D and HUI-3 when distinguishing between different severities according to clinician-assessed CGAS (effect size range 0.17-0.84). CONCLUSIONS: The study showed that the commonly used MAUIs had good concurrent and construct validity compared with routinely used self-complete measures but poor validity when compared with clinician/proxy-completed measures. These findings generally held across different diagnoses.

Extreme physiological plasticity in a hibernating basoendothermic mammal, Tenrec ecaudatus.

Physiological plasticity allows organisms to respond to diverse conditions. However, can being too plastic actually be detrimental? Malagasy common tenrecs, Tenrec ecaudatus, have many plesiomorphic traits and may represent a basal placental mammal. We established a laboratory population of T. ecaudatus and found extreme plasticity in thermoregulation and metabolism, a novel hibernation form, variable annual timing, and remarkable growth and reproductive biology. For instance, tenrec body temperature (Tb) may approximate ambient temperature to as low as 12°C even when tenrecs are fully active. Conversely, tenrecs can hibernate with Tb of 28°C. During the active season, oxygen consumption may vary 25-fold with little or no change in Tb During the austral winter, tenrecs are consistently torpid but the depth of torpor may vary. A righting assay revealed that Tb contributes to but does not dictate activity status. Homeostatic processes are not always linked, e.g. a hibernating tenrec experienced a ∼34% decrease in heart rate while maintaining constant body temperature and oxygen consumption rates. Tenrec growth rates vary but young may grow ∼40-fold in the 5 weeks until weaning and may possess indeterminate growth as adults. Despite all of this profound plasticity, tenrecs are surprisingly intolerant of extremes in ambient temperature (<8 or >34°C). We contend that while plasticity may confer numerous energetic advantages in consistently moderate environments, environmental extremes may have limited the success and distribution of plastic basal mammals.

The impact of depression on health-related quality of life and wellbeing: identifying important dimensions and assessing their inclusion in multi-attribute utility instruments.

PURPOSE: Wellbeing measures have been proposed for inclusion in economic evaluation to measure the effect of depression and compensate for shortcomings of existing multi-attribute utility instruments (MAUIs). The aims of this study were to identify dimensions of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and wellbeing that are most affected by depression and to examine the extent to which these are captured by MAUIs. METHODS: Data were used from the Multi-Instrument Comparison study. Dimensions of HRQoL (SF-36v2 and AQoL-8D dimensions), capability wellbeing (ICECAP-A), and subjective wellbeing (including PWI, SWLS, and IHS) were identified that distinguished most individuals with depression from a healthy public. The extent to which these dimensions explain the content of five existing MAUIs (15D, AQoL-8D, EQ-5D-5L, HUI-3, and SF-6D) was examined using regression analyses. Additionally, the sensitivity of all MAUIs was also assessed towards depression-specific symptoms measured by DASS-21 and K-10. RESULTS: The sample consisted of 917 individuals with self-reported depression and 1760 healthy subjects. Dimensions that distinguished most individuals with depression from the healthy group (effect size > 2) included AQoL-8D coping, AQoL-8D happiness, AQoL-8D self-worth, ICECAP-A, SF-36 mental health, and SF-36 social functioning. The AQoL-8D was most sensitive to the dimensions above as well as towards the depression-specific measures, the K10, DASS-S, and DASS-D. CONCLUSIONS: This study has shown that psychosocial dimensions of HRQoL have the greatest ability to capture the impact of depression when compared with dimensions of capability wellbeing and SWB. Some MAUIs, such as the AQoL-8D, are sensitive to most distinguishing dimensions of HRQoL and wellbeing, which may obviate the need for supplementary wellbeing instruments.

Cost-effective targeting of conservation investments to reduce the northern Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone.

A seasonally occurring summer hypoxic (low oxygen) zone in the northern Gulf of Mexico is the second largest in the world. Reductions in nutrients from agricultural cropland in its watershed are needed to reduce the hypoxic zone size to the national policy goal of 5,000 km(2) (as a 5-y running average) set by the national Gulf of Mexico Task Force's Action Plan. We develop an integrated assessment model linking the water quality effects of cropland conservation investment decisions on the more than 550 agricultural subwatersheds that deliver nutrients into the Gulf with a hypoxic zone model. We use this integrated assessment model to identify the most cost-effective subwatersheds to target for cropland conservation investments. We consider targeting of the location (which subwatersheds to treat) and the extent of conservation investment to undertake (how much cropland within a subwatershed to treat). We use process models to simulate the dynamics of the effects of cropland conservation investments on nutrient delivery to the Gulf and use an evolutionary algorithm to solve the optimization problem. Model results suggest that by targeting cropland conservation investments to the most cost-effective location and extent of coverage, the Action Plan goal of 5,000 km(2) can be achieved at a cost of $2.7 billion annually. A large set of cost-hypoxia tradeoffs is developed, ranging from the baseline to the nontargeted adoption of the most aggressive cropland conservation investments in all subwatersheds (estimated to reduce the hypoxic zone to less than 3,000 km(2) at a cost of $5.6 billion annually).

Reduced population burden of road transport-related major trauma after introduction of an inclusive trauma system.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the burden of road transport-related serious injury in Victoria, Australia, over a 10-year period, after the introduction of an integrated trauma system. BACKGROUND: Road traffic injury is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Efforts to improve care of the injured are important for reducing burden, but the impact of trauma care systems on burden and cost of road traffic injury has not been evaluated. METHODS: All road transport-related deaths and major trauma (injury severity score >12) cases were extracted from population-based coroner and trauma registry data sets for July 2001 to June 2011. Modeling was used to assess changes in population incidence rates and odds of in-hospital mortality. Disability-adjusted life years, combining years of life lost and years lived with disability, were calculated. Cost of health loss was calculated from estimates of the value of a disability-adjusted life year. RESULTS: Incidence of road transport-related deaths decreased (incidence rate ratio 0.95, 95% confidence interval: 0.94-0.96), whereas the incidence of hospitalized major trauma increased (incidence rate ratio 1.03, 95% confidence interval: 1.02-1.04). Years of life lost decreased by 43%, and years lived with disability increased by 32%, with an overall 28% reduction in disability-adjusted life years over the decade. There was a cost saving per case of A$633,446 in 2010-2011 compared with the 2001-2002 financial year. CONCLUSIONS: Since introduction of the trauma system in Victoria, Australia, the burden of road transport-related serious injury has decreased. Hospitalized major trauma cases increased, whereas disability burden per case declined. Increased survival does not necessarily result in an overall increase in nonfatal injury burden.

Meaningful use: a national framework for integrated telemedicine.

INTRODUCTION: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has incentivized electronic health records (EHRs) implementation through meaningful use (MU) to improve healthcare quality and efficacy. Telemedicine is a key tool that has shown its ability to facilitate MU through technological innovation with cost savings and has shown promise in the area of integrated behavioral healthcare. The purpose of this article is to propose a model of MU to frame the incentivized implementation of an integrated telemedicine (ITM)-specific model to effect system-level change. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed the background, principles, and a justification for the ITM Model including cost issues, the development and structure of MU in the context of EHRs, the benefits of integrated behavioral healthcare and telemedicine, and the case for their combined implementation in the form of ITM. RESULTS: The model proposed, the ITM Incentive Program, parallels the current MU program and is composed of three stages. Stage 1 focuses on incentivizing current and new Medicaid providers to adapt, implement, and upgrade technology needed to conduct virtual meetings with patients and other healthcare professionals. Stage 2 is a tiered incentive system with process-focused and track metrics related to increasing the number of consultations with patients. In Stage 3, providers are encouraged to continue use of ITM by meeting thresholds for several objectives focused on clinical outcomes. Recommendations for implementing this model within a payment waiver system are discussed. CONCLUSIONS: The ITM Model offers a needed union of integrated care and telemedicine through the combination of technology, business, and clinical processes. The success of MU as a tiered incentive program for EHRs, as well as the precedent of using waiver opportunities for incentive funding repayments, sets forth a strategic framework to successful implementation of ITM to address cost issues and improve quality and access to care in the healthcare system.

Assessing outcomes for cost-utility analysis in depression: comparison of five multi-attribute utility instruments with two depression-specific outcome measures.

BACKGROUND: Many mental health surveys and clinical studies do not include a multi-attribute utility instrument (MAUI) that produces quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). There is also some question about the sensitivity of the existing utility instruments to mental health. AIMS: To compare the sensitivity of five commonly used MAUIs (Assessment of Quality of Life - Eight Dimension Scale (AQoL-8D), EuroQoL-five dimension (EQ-5D-5L), Short Form 6D (SF-6D), Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI3), 15D) with that of disease-specific depression outcome measures (Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) and the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10)) and develop 'crosswalk' transformation algorithms between the measures. METHOD: Individual data from 917 people with self-report depression collected as part of the International Multi-Instrument Comparison Survey. RESULTS: All the MAUIs discriminated between the levels of severity measured by the K10 and the DASS-21. The AQoL-8D had the highest correlation with the disease-specific measures and the best goodness-of-fit transformation properties. CONCLUSIONS: The algorithms developed in this study can be used to determine cost-effectiveness of services or interventions where utility measures are not collected.

Mapping of incontinence quality of life (I-QOL) scores to assessment of quality of life 8D (AQoL-8D) utilities in patients with idiopathic overactive bladder.

BACKGROUND: The Incontinence Quality of Life (I-QOL) questionnaire is a commonly used and validated incontinence specific QOL instrument. The objective of this study is to develop an algorithm to map I-QOL to the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL) 8D utility instrument in patients with idiopathic overactive bladder (iOAB). METHODS: I-QOL and AQoL-8D scores were collected in a survey of 177 Australian adults with urinary incontinence due to iOAB. Three statistical methods were used for estimation, namely ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, the robust MM-estimator, and the generalised linear models (GLM). Each included a range of explanatory variables. Model performance was assessed using key goodness-of-fit measures in the validation dataset. RESULTS: The I-QOL total score and AQoL-8D utility scores were positively correlated (r = 0.50, p < 0.0001). Similarly, the three sub-scales of the I-QOL were correlated with the eight dimensions and two super-dimensions of the AQoL-8D. The GLM estimator, with I-QOL total score as the explanatory variable exhibited the best precision (MAE = 0.15 and RMSE = 0.18) with a mapping function given by AQoL-8D = exp(-1.28666 + 1.011072*I-QOL/100). CONCLUSIONS: The mapping algorithm developed in this study allows the derivation of AQoL-8D utilities from I-QOL scores. The algorithm allows the calculation of preference-based QOL scores for use in cost-utility analyses to assess the impact of interventions in urinary incontinence.

Terrestrial laser scanning for vegetation sampling.

We developed new vegetation indices utilizing terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) to quantify the three-dimensional spatial configuration of plant communities. These indices leverage the novelty of TLS data and rely on the spatially biased arrangement of a TLS point cloud. We calculated these indices from TLS data acquired within an existing long term manipulation of forest structure in Central Oregon, USA, and used these data to test for differences in vegetation structure. Results provided quantitative evidence of a significant difference in vegetation density due to thinning and burning, and a marginally significant difference in vegetation patchiness due to grazing. A comparison to traditional field sampling highlighted the novelty of the TLS based method. By creating a linkage between traditional field sampling and landscape ecology, these indices enable field investigations of fine-scale spatial patterns. Applications include experimental assessment, long-term monitoring, and habitat characterization.

Construction of the descriptive system for the Assessment of Quality of Life AQoL-6D utility instrument.

BACKGROUND: Multi attribute utility (MAU) instruments are used to include the health related quality of life (HRQoL) in economic evaluations of health programs. Comparative studies suggest different MAU instruments measure related but different constructs. The objective of this paper is to describe the methods employed to achieve content validity in the descriptive system of the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL)-6D, MAU instrument. METHODS: The AQoL program introduced the use of psychometric methods in the construction of health related MAU instruments. To develop the AQoL-6D we selected 112 items from previous research, focus groups and expert judgment and administered them to 316 members of the public and 302 hospital patients. The search for content validity across a broad spectrum of health states required both formative and reflective modelling. We employed Exploratory Factor Analysis and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to meet these dual requirements. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The resulting instrument employs 20 items in a multi-tier descriptive system. Latent dimension variables achieve sensitive descriptions of 6 dimensions which, in turn, combine to form a single latent QoL variable. Diagnostic statistics from the SEM analysis are exceptionally good and confirm the hypothesised structure of the model. CONCLUSIONS: The AQoL-6D descriptive system has good psychometric properties. They imply that the instrument has achieved construct validity and provides a sensitive description of HRQoL. This means that it may be used with confidence for measuring health related quality of life and that it is a suitable basis for modelling utilities for inclusion in the economic evaluation of health programs.

Fluoroscopy-induced chronic radiation skin injury: a disease perhaps often overlooked.

BACKGROUND: Fluoroscopy-induced chronic radiation dermatitis (FICRD) resulting from prolonged exposure to ionizing radiation during interventional procedures has been documented in the radiology and cardiology literature. However, the phenomenon has been rarely reported in the dermatologic literature. Since patients with FICRD often see a dermatologist or a primary care physician to treat their injuries, the diagnosis of FICRD is perhaps often overlooked. OBSERVATIONS: A 62-year-old man with type 2 diabetes mellitus and severe coronary artery disease was seen with a 2-year history of a pruritic, tender, telangiectatic patch lesion over his left scapula. Over the next 2 years, the lesion became indurated and eventually ulcerated. A skin biopsy specimen demonstrated changes consistent with a chronic radiation dermatitis. The patient was unaware of radiation exposure, but persistent questioning from his dermatologists revealed that he had undergone multiple fluoroscopy-guided cardiac procedures. This was confirmed by a review of his medical records. CONCLUSION: The diagnosis of FICRD should be considered for any patient who is seen with an acquired vascular lesion, a morphealike lesion, or an unexplained ulcer localized over the scapula, the back, or lateral trunk below the axilla.

Supplier-induced demand: re-examining identification and misspecification in cross-sectional analysis.

This paper re-examines criticisms of cross-sectional methods used to test for supplier-induced demand (SID) and re-evaluates the empirical evidence using data from Australian medical services. Cross-sectional studies of SID have been criticised on two grounds. First, and most important, the inclusion of the doctor supply in the demand equation leads to an identification problem. This criticism is shown to be invalid, as the doctor supply variable is stochastic and depends upon a variety of other variables including the desirability of the location. Second, cross-sectional studies of SID fail diagnostic tests and produce artefactual findings due to model misspecification. Contrary to this, the re-evaluation of cross-sectional Australian data indicate that demand equations that do not include the doctor supply are misspecified. Empirical evidence from the re-evaluation of Australian medical services data supports the notion of SID. Demand and supply equations are well specified and have very good explanatory power. The demand equation is identified and the desirability of a location is an important predictor of the doctor supply. Results show an average price elasticity of demand of 0.22 and an average elasticity of demand with respect to the doctor supply of 0.46, with the impact of SID becoming stronger as the doctor supply rises. The conclusion we draw from this paper is that two of the main criticisms of the empirical evidence supporting the SID hypothesis have been inappropriately levelled at the methods used. More importantly, SID provides a satisfactory, and robust, explanation of the empirical data on the demand for medical services in Australia.

Glomeruloid hemangioma leading to a diagnosis of POEMS syndrome.

POEMS is an acronym for polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, and skin changes. It is a poorly understood paraneoplastic syndrome that stems from an underlying plasma cell dyscrasia. Of the skin changes, the glomeruloid hemangioma is considered to be a specific marker of POEMS syndrome. We describe a 68-year-old man who presented to his dermatologist with multiple hemangiomas, whose biopsy diagnosis of glomeruloid hemangioma resulted in further evaluation and an eventual diagnosis of POEMS.

Supplier-induced demand: reconsidering the theories and new Australian evidence.

This paper reconsiders the evidence and several of the key arguments associated with the theory of supplier-induced demand (SID). It proposes a new theory to explain how ethical behaviour is consistent with SID. The purpose of a theory of demand and one criterion for the evaluation of a theory is the provision of a plausible explanation for the observed variability in service use. We argue that Australian data are not easily explained by orthodox possible explanation. We also argue that, having revisited the theory of SID, the agency relationship between doctors and patients arises not simply because of asymmetrical information but from an asymmetrical ability and willingness to exercise judgement in the face of uncertainty. It is also argued that the incomplete demand shift that must occur following an increase in the doctor supply is readily explained by the dynamics of market adjustment when market information is incomplete and there is non-collusive professional (and ethical) behaviour by doctors. Empirical evidence of SID from six Australian data sets is presented and discussed. It is argued that these are more easily explained by SID than by conventional demand side variables. We conclude that once the uncertainty of medical decision making and the complexity of medical judgements are taken into account, SID is a more plausible theory of patient and doctor behaviour than the orthodox model of demand and supply. More importantly, SID provides a satisfactory explanation of the observed pattern and change in the demand for Australian medical services, which are not easily explained in the absence of SID.

Diagnosis-based risk adjustment and Australian health system policy.

Diagnosis-based risk adjustment is increasingly seen as an important tool for establishing capitation payments and evaluating appropriateness and efficiency of services provided and has become an important area of research for many countries contemplating health system reform. This paper examines the application of a risk-adjustment method, extensively validated in the United States, known as diagnostic cost groups (DCG), to a large Australian hospital inpatient data set. The data set encompassed hospital inpatient diagnoses and inpatient expenditure for the entire metropolitan population residing in the state of New South Wales. The DCG model was able to explain 34% of individual-level variation in concurrent expenditure and 5.2% in subsequent year expenditure, which is comparable to US studies using inpatient-only data. The degree of stability and internal consistency of the parameter estimates for both the concurrent and prospective models indicate the DCG methodology has face validity in its application to NSW health data sets. Modelling and simulations were conducted which demonstrate the policy applications and significance of risk adjustment model(s) in the Australian context. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using large individual-level data sets for diagnosis-based risk adjustment research in Australia. The results suggest that a research agenda should be established to broaden the options for health system reform.

Strengths and limitations of competitive versus non-competitive models of integrated capitated fundholding.

Integrated budget-holding (fundholding) based on risk-adjusted capitation is commonly proposed as a central element of health system reform. Two contrasting models have been developed: the competitive model where fundholders or health plans compete for enrollees; and the non-competitive model, where plan membership is determined according to an objective attribute such as place of residence. Under the competitive model, efficiency is sought through consumer choice of plan. A range of regulatory elements may also be introduced to moderate undesirable elements of competition. Under the non-competitive model, efficiency is achieved through government regulation and the fact that the fundholder has continuing responsibility for the health of a defined population, supported by micro-management tools (such as quality assurance and selective payment arrangements). In theory, the non-competitive model encourages population-based health services planning. While both models assume risk-adjusted capitated funding, the requirements of any formula are more stringent under the competitive model. Economic theory, as well as documented health system experience, can help identify the relative strengths and limitations of each model. Concerns with the competitive model relate primarily to the capacity to develop robust risk adjusters for capitation sufficient to reduce the incentives for patient risk selection. Possible reductions in the quality of care are also a concern, compounded by difficulties for consumers in discriminating between plans. Efficiency under the non-competitive model requires a strong and appropriate regulatory/policy framework and effective use of micro-management tools. Funding equity objectives can be met through either model by the adoption of income-related contributions, but under the competitive model this may be compromised by incentives for the fundholders to select low-risk patients. Evidence drawn from regional fundholding in New South Wales (NSW, Australia), the US Veterans Health Agency and the literature on managed care in the USA illustrate these concerns. The problem of risk selection in the competitive model is a major theoretical concern, confirmed by the empirical evidence. This, together with concerns regarding other aspects of performance, suggests that the non-competitive model may be preferable, at least as an interim step in reform in public or mixed systems. Future research on this issue is clearly required.

In defence of societal sovereignty: a comment on Nyman 'the inclusion of survivor consumption in CUA'.

Whether to include or exclude consumption costs and costs of unrelated illnesses in economic evaluation is not a technical issue which may be answered by reference to individuals alone and the consistency of the treatment of individual costs and benefits. In the context of a publicly funded health service the relevant costs and benefits may differ from those normally included in evaluation studies. Specifically, the social welfare function is likely to exclude benefits which would result in preferential care for wealthier members of society. But this conclusion must be established by analysis of social, not individual, values.