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Cost-effectiveness of WHO Problem Management Plus for adults with mood and anxiety disorders in a post-conflict area of Pakistan: randomised controlled trial

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 July 2020

Syed Usman Hamdani*
Affiliation:
Institute of Life and Human Sciences, University of Liverpool, UK; and Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
Zill-e- Huma
Affiliation:
Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
Atif Rahman
Affiliation:
Institute of Life and Human Sciences, University of Liverpool, UK
Duolao Wang
Affiliation:
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK
Tao Chen
Affiliation:
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK
Mark van Ommeren
Affiliation:
Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
Dan Chisholm
Affiliation:
WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
Saeed Farooq
Affiliation:
Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar, Pakistan; and School of Primary, Community and Social Care, Keele University, UK.
*
Correspondence: Syed Usman Hamdani. Email: s.u.hamdani@liverpool.ac.uk
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Abstract

Background

With the development of evidence-based interventions for treatment of priority mental health conditions in humanitarian settings, it is important to establish the cost-effectiveness of such interventions to enable their scale-up.

Aims

To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the Problem Management Plus (PM+) intervention compared with enhanced usual care (EUC) for common mental disorders in primary healthcare in Peshawar, Pakistan. Trial registration ACTRN12614001235695 (anzctr.org.au).

Method

We randomly allocated 346 participants to either PM+ (n = 172) or EUC (n = 174). Effectiveness was measured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) at 3 months post-intervention. Cost-effectiveness analysis was performed as incremental costs (measured in Pakistani rupees, PKR) per unit change in anxiety, depression and functioning scores.

Results

The total cost of delivering PM+ per participant was estimated at PKR 16 967 (US$163.14) using an international trainer and supervisor, and PKR 3645 (US$35.04) employing a local trainer. The mean cost per unit score improvement in anxiety and depression symptoms on the HADS was PKR 2957 (95% CI 2262–4029) (US$28) with an international trainer/supervisor and PKR 588 (95% CI 434–820) (US$6) with a local trainer/supervisor. The mean incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) to successfully treat a case of depression (PHQ-9 ≥ 10) using an international supervisor was PKR 53 770 (95% CI 39 394–77 399) (US$517), compared with PKR 10 705 (95% CI 7731–15 627) (US$102.93) using a local supervisor.

Conclusions

The PM+ intervention was more effective but also more costly than EUC in reducing symptoms of anxiety, depression and improving functioning in adults impaired by psychological distress in a post-conflict setting of Pakistan.

Information

Type
Papers
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - SA
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the same Creative Commons licence is included and the original work is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use.
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Royal College of Psychiatrists
Figure 0

Table 1 Health services utilisation (including religious help and retreats, in-patient services and reduced usual work/activities due to health condition) across the two trial arms at baseline and at 3 months post-intervention

Figure 1

Table 2 Cost of health services accessed by participants (out-patient, in-patient, drugs/medication, and complimentary medicines and religious retreats) by trial arma

Figure 2

Table 3 Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs)a for the PM+ intervention at 3 months post-intervention for international versus local supervisors

Figure 3

Fig. 1 Cost-effectiveness acceptability curves for Problem Management Plus (PM+) in relation to improvement in Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) total score at 3-month follow-up (end-point). (a) PM+ using an international supervisor. (b) PM+ using a local supervisor. Costs are shown in Pakistan rupees (PKR); the 2016 exchange rate was 1US$ = 104 PKR.

Figure 4

Fig. 2 Cost-effectiveness acceptability curves for Problem Management Plus (PM+) in relation to improvement in score on the 12-item version of the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 20) at 3-month follow-up (end-point). (a) PM+ using an international supervisor. (b) PM+ using a local supervisor. Costs are shown in Pakistan rupees (PKR); the 2016 exchange rate was 1US$ = 104 PKR.

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