Cost-effectiveness and cost-utility study of a psychoeducational group intervention for people with depression and physical comorbidity in primary care

Objective To evaluate the cost-effectiveness and cost-utility of a psychoeducational group intervention led by primary care (PC) nurses in relation to customary care to prevent the depression and improve quality of life in patients with physical comorbidity. Design Economic evaluation based on data from randomized, multicenter clinical trial with blind response variables and a one-year follow-up, carried in the context of the PSICODEP study. Location: 27 PC teams from Catalonia. Participants: >50 year-old patients with depression and some physical comorbidity: diabetes mellitus type 2, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and/or asthma. Intervention: 12 psychoeducational group sessions, 1 per week, led by 2 PC nurses with prior training. Measurements Effectiveness: depression-free days (DFD) calculated from the BDI-II and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) from the Euroqol-5D. Direct costs: PC visits, mental health, emergencies and hospitalizations, drugs. Indirect costs: days of temporary disability (TD). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICER), cost-effectiveness (ΔCost/ΔDLD) and cost-utility (ΔCost/ΔQALY) were estimated. Results The study includes 380 patients (intervention group [IG] = 204; control group [CG] = 176). 81.6% women; mean age 68.4 (SD = 8.8). The IG had a higher mean cost of visits, less of hospitalizations and less TD than the CG. The difference in costs between the IG and the CG was −357.95€ (95% CI: −2026.96 to 1311.06) at one year of follow-up. There was a mean of 11.95 (95% CI: −15.98 to 39.88) more DFD in the IG than in the CG. QALYs were similar (difference −0.01, 95% CI −0.04 to 0.05). The ICERs were 29.95€/DLD and 35,795€/QALY. Conclusions Psychoeducational intervention is associated with an improvement in DFD, as well as a reduction in costs at 12 months, although not significantly. QALYs were very similar between groups.