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Treating alcohol problems: a study of programme effectiveness and cost effectiveness according to length and delivery of treatment.

C G Long·M Williams·C R Hollin
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Abstract

AIMS: To compare effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a 5-week inpatient and a two week in- and day-patient regime. DESIGN: Pre-post assessment of consecutive treatment referrals with follow-up at 6 and 12 months. In a sequential study design, 112 patients underwent a 5-week residential programme while a subsequent 100 patients underwent a 2-week in- and day-patient programme. To investigate the effect of changing programme delivery, patient groups from before and after the programme changes were compared. SETTING: Addiction treatment unit in an independent hospital. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred and thirty-six males and 76 female patients with an ICD-10 diagnosis of Alcohol Dependence Syndrome. MEASUREMENTS: Self-report (Comprehensive Drinkers Profile: Follow-Up Drinkers Profile: SADQ), collateral report (Collateral Interview Form) and blood test (MCV & GGT) data were used to categorize patients into abstinent, non-problem drinker, drinking but improved and unimproved groups. Percentage of days abstinent, intensity of drinking, length of time in treatment, treatment cost and use of aftercare were also measured. FINDINGS: Abstinence or non-problem drinking was achieved by 55.6% of all patients at 1 year. Change in programme delivery did not affect outcome but treatment costs and mean length of stay for the revised programme were significantly reduced. CONCLUSIONS: A two week in- and day-patient treatment was more cost effective than a 5-week inpatient treatment. Design limitations make these conclusions tentative pending a randomized controlled trial.

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AlcoholismCost-Benefit AnalysisFemaleHealth Care CostsHumansLength of StayMaleMiddle AgedProgram EvaluationTreatment OutcomeJournal Article

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BibTeXRIS

C G Long, M Williams, C R Hollin. 1998. Treating alcohol problems: a study of programme effectiveness and cost effectiveness according to length and delivery of treatment.. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1360-0443.1998.93456111.x

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