The relationship between prescribing expenditure and quality in primary care: an observational study

Fleetcroft, Robert and Cookson, Richard (2006) The relationship between prescribing expenditure and quality in primary care: an observational study. British Journal of General Practice, 56 (529). pp. 613-619. ISSN 1478-5242

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Abstract

Background If all GPs target their prescribing appropriately, then a positive relationship may be expected between targeting quality indicators and associated prescribing expenditure. Little is known about this relationship. Aim To explore the relationship between prescribing quality indicators and associated prescribing expenditures. Design: Observational study of prescribing expenditure and quality indicators. Setting: Seventy-one of the 121 practices in the Norfolk and Waveney area of East Anglia in England. Method: Data were collected on quality indicators for 2002–2003 in seven areas likely to produce the greatest number of lives saved over a period of 1 year. This was linked to routine data on associated pharmaceutical expenditure. Results: There was considerable variation in quality in all areas apart from influenza immunisation. Significant correlations between prescribing quality and expenditure were found in only two of the seven areas. When quality scores were combined into a composite quality index weighted by health gain, a small positive association was found, but this association is lost if all indicators are weighted equally. Conclusions: There appeared to be no relationship between quality indicators and prescribing expenditure at the practice level for most of the therapeutic areas studied. This suggests the possibility that there may be scope for some GPs to target prescribing more appropriately towards high risk patients — and thus save more lives — without increasing prescribing expenditure.

Item Type:	Article
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Public Health and Health Services Research (former - to 2023)
Related URLs:	https://bjgp.org/content/56/529/613
Depositing User:	EPrints Services
Date Deposited:	25 Nov 2010 11:13
Last Modified:	16 Jul 2024 00:17
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/15234
DOI:	issn:1478-5242

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