Direct medical costs of hospitalisations for mental disorders in Shanghai, China: a time series study

Abstract

ObjectivesTo provide cost burden estimates and long-term trend forecast of mental disorders that need hospitalisations in Shanghai, China.DesignDaily hospital admissions and medical expenditures for mental disorder hospitalisations between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2015 were used for analysis. Yearly total health expenditures and expenditures per hospital admission for different populations, as well as per-admission-per-year medical costs of each service for mental disorder hospitalisations, were estimated through data from 2015. We also established time series analyses to determine the long-time trend of total direct medical expenditures for mental disorders and forecasted expenditures until 31 December 2030.SettingShanghai, China.ParticipantsDaily hospital admissions for mental disorders of registered residents living in all 16 districts of Shanghai, who participated in workers’ basic medical insurance or the urban residents’ basic medical insurance (n=60 306).ResultsFrom 2011 to 2015, there were increased yearly trends for both hospitalisations (from 10 919 to 14 054) and total costs (from US$23.56 to 42.13 million per year in 2015 currency) in Shanghai. Cost per mental disorder hospitalisation in 2015 averaged US$2998.01. Most direct medical costs were spent on medical supplies. By the end of 2030, the average cost per admission per month for mental disorders was estimated to be US$7394.17 (95% CI US$6782.24 to 8006.10) for mental disorders, and the total health expenditure for mental disorders would reach over US$100.52 million (95% CI US$92.20 to 108.83 million) without additional government interventions.ConclusionsThese findings suggest total health expenditures for mental disorders in Shanghai will be higher in the future. Effective measures should be taken to reduce the rapid growth of the economic burden of mental disorders.

The Impact of Air Pollution on Attributable Risks and Economic Costs of Hospitalization for Mental Disorders

“…A study summarizing the hospital admissions and the related direct medical costs for mental disorders in Shanghai also showed the same trend (Chen et al, 2017).…”

Successfully treated patients with vortioxetine versus venlafaxine: a simplified cost-effectiveness analysis based on a head-to-head study in Asian patients with major depressive disorder

“…Although an acceptability threshold or willingness-to-pay for an additional successfully treated patient as defined in this study is not well defined, the cost-effectiveness estimates of this study may be put into perspective by quantifying the economic burden of depression. For example, the direct costs of hospitalization due to mental health disorders (depression, mania and childhood autism) averaged approximately US$3000 per admission in China in 2015 49 . In their evaluation of the overall economic burden of MDD using 2010 US claims data and propensity-score matching, Greenberg and co-authors further estimated that the mean medical service costs (excluding prescription drug costs) were US$7604 for patients with MDD versus US$3465 for matched non-MDD patients, while the mean indirect costs of missed work were US$4084 and US$1353 per patient in the respective patient groups 50 .…”

The perceived challenges of working with patients who use new psychoactive substances: a qualitative study in a medium secure unit

“…Although case reports have limited generalisability, such findings are evidence of the potential for NPS use to induce relapse, which in-turn could interrupt treatment, resulting in prolonged hospitalisation. Prolonged hospitalisation has implications for the wider service in terms of bed utilisation and high economic costs (Chen et al, 2017).…”