Evidence map›Paper›PMID 8305075›Full record

ArticleBMJ (Clinical research ed.)1993

General practice fundholding: observations on prescribing patterns and costs using the defined daily dose method.

M Maxwell, D Heaney, J G Howie, S Noble

Erratum issuedAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 1993. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 40 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
40citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

40 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pharmaceutical policies: effects of financial incentives for prescribers.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2015
    Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Nutritional counselling in general practice: a cost effective analysis.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 1999
    Trial
  4. Do prescribing formularies help GPs prescribe from a narrower range of drugs? A controlled trial of the introduction of prescribing formularies for NSAIDs.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 1997
    Trial
  5. Article
  6. The impact of physician-level drug budgets on prescribing behavior.The European journal of health economics : HEPAC : health economics in prevention and care · 2018
    Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Do family physicians know the costs of medical care? Survey in British Columbia.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien · 2004
    Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Therapeutic substitution and therapeutic conservatism as cost-containment strategies in primary care: a study of fundholders and non-fundholders.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 1999
    Article
  17. A comparison of three methods of setting prescribing budgets, using data derived from defined daily dose analyses of historic patterns of use.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 1998
    Article
  18. Article
  19. General practice fundholding: progress to date.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 1998
    Review
  20. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

  • Erratum issued
5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

M MaxwellDepartment of General Practice, University of Edinburgh.
D Heaney
J G Howie
S Noble

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo compare prescribing patterns between a group of fundholding practices and a group of non-fundholding practices in north east Scotland using a method which provides more accurate statements about volumes prescribed than standard NHS statistics.

designThe pharmacy practice division of the National Health Service in Scotland provided data for selected British National Formulary sections over two years. Each prescription issued was converted using the World Health Organisation "defined daily dose" mechanism.

settingSix fundholding groups (nine practices) in Grampian and Tayside regions and six non-fundholding practices in Grampian.

resultsDuring the past two years both fundholding and control practices reduced the volume of their prescribing for the classes of drug analysed. The unit costs of drugs in some classes, however, rose substantially, contributing to higher costs per patient. The unit costs rose more in the control practices (24%) than in the fundholding practices (11% in Tayside, 16% in Grampian).

conclusionThe use of defined daily doses helped identify cost and volume trends in specific areas of prescribing in fundholding and control practices. The basis on which funds are set needs improving, and defined daily doses may prove useful for setting volume targets within drug classes for all practices, whether fundholding or not.

Indexed as

Age FactorsDrug CostsDrug PrescriptionsDrug Utilization ReviewFamily PracticeHumansScotlandState Medicine

Identifiers

PMID8305075
PMCPMC1679327

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.