Wu, Q., Parrott, S., Godfrey, C., Gilbert, H., Nazareth, I., Leurent, B., Sutton, S., & Morris, R. (2014). Cost-effectiveness of computer-tailored smoking cessation advice in primary care: A randomized trial (ESCAPE). Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 16(3), 270-278. doi: 10.1093/ntr/ntt136. PMID: 24084467.
Traditional smoking cessation interventions in primary care often contribute to financial savings by reducing smoking-related illness and disease. Still, no study has yet compared the cost of a computer-tailored smoking intervention for primary care patients with traditional smoking cessation advice. To compare the cost of these two interventions, data from a randomized controlled trial of a computer-tailored intervention for smokers was analyzed. Primary care patients who smoked were enrolled in the study. Half were randomly assigned to receive tailored advice on smoking cessation through a computer program. The other half of participant received a standardized smoking cessation brochure. Short-term costs and benefits were calculated from study data. Analytic modeling techniques were used to examine the lifetime costs and benefits of the two programs. Although the computer-tailored advice was slightly more expensive than the brochure in the short-term, patients receiving the advice computer-tailored advice gained more quality adjusted life years (QALYS). Therefore, patients receiving the computer program had greater increases in healthy years of life. Results of the analytic model suggested that in the long term the computer-tailored intervention lead to lower costs and greater benefits than the standardized brochure.