ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of single-disease quota payment in Chengdu.MethodsThe data of medical insurance in Chengdu from 2009 to 2013 were used to compare changes of average hospitalization expenses, hospitalization days, re-admission rate and so on by establishing a difference-in-difference (DID) model.ResultsThe quota payment policy effectively controlled the overall medical expenses. Drug fee and examination fee were significantly affected (P<0.01). However, the re-admission rate was significantly improved (P<0.10).ConclusionThe implementation of single-disease quota payment in Chengdu controlled the medical expanses growth effectively, but it is necessary to prevent its side effects.
In recent years, the concept of population medicine has emerged as a research field that has important implications for healthcare practice and policy decision-making. It specifically aims to improve overall health of patient populations and safety, quality and efficiency of healthcare system. This paper descried the background, definition and characteristics of population medicine, discussed relationship between population medicine and population health and evidence-based medicine. It also introduced Department of Population Medicine at Harvard Medical School as a world-class model in the field of population medicine, discussed the needs and potential strategies for developing population medicine research in China, and briefly outlined the current development of population medicine in China.
ObjectiveTo investigate the development, production and use of children’s drugs in Sichuan Province, analyze the problems existing in these links, and provide suggestions for ensuring that children’s needs for drugs are met. MethodsThe self-filling electronic questionnaire was used to investigate the production, procurement and use of children’s drugs in 14 pharmaceutical companies producing children’s drugs and 20 general hospitals with pediatric departments or children’s hospitals in Sichuan province. ResultsThe 14 surveyed pharmaceutical companies reported that 116 children’s drugs were being developed or produced (75 first-class children’s drugs with exact medication information for children, 41 second-class children’s drugs only noted as children's discretionary reduction or use according to clinician’s instructions), out of which 109 (93.97%) drugs had been approved for marketing, 21 (18.10%) were national essential medicines and 76 (65.52%) were covered by national basic medical insurance. The dosage forms of first-class children's drugs were mainly tablets (28, 37.34%) and granules (19, 25.34%), while oral solution (3, 4.00%), syrup (5, 6.67%) and other dosage forms suitable for children were less. According to the surveyed results on the use of children's drugs in hospitals, there were 57 children’s drugs whose minimum use units needed to be manually divided into smaller ones on average in each hospital, and it was the most common operation pattern that pharmacists informed nurses, patients or patients’ family members of the dose splitting methods and then splitting drugs’ minimum use units by themselves. ConclusionThere is a great demand for splitting minimum use units of drugs whose strength is too big for children in medical institutions, and some children’s drugs need to be developed and further modified to meet the clinical children’s drug needs. We should further increase investments and policy supports for the children’s drugs, promote children’s clinical trials, and encourage the research and development of children’s drugs.
With the acceleration of global innovative drug development, selecting safe, effective, and cost-effective products from numerous drugs has posed new challenges for the decision-making process of medical insurance drug access and dynamic updating of insurance directory. Real-world data (RWD) provides a new perspective for evaluation of clinical and economic value of drugs, but there are still uncertainties regarding the scope, quality standards, and evidence categories of RWD that can be used. Based on the current status of domestic and international RWD supporting the assessment of the clinical and economic value of drugs, this paper, in collaboration with national RWD and healthcare experts, has developed the key considerations for using real-world data to evaluate the clinical and economic value of drugs. This paper first clarifies the scope of RWD that can be used to evaluate the clinical and economic value of drugs evaluate; secondly, provides specific requirements and guidance on data attribution, data governance, and quality standards for RWD; finally, summarizes the evidence categories of RWD supporting evaluate the clinical and economic value of drugs evaluate.