Abstract
The present research examined the RDU Hospital/RDU Service Plan projects through an evaluation of the policy effects on quantitative outcomes using an analysis of facility-based, electronic drug and healthcare databases. The main approach was an interrupted, time-series analysis determining changes in levels and trends of selected indicators before and after the RDU policies. The RDU Hospital policy had a statistically non-significant effect on the use of antibiotics in target conditions and drugs to be concerned with safety conditions. The RDU Service Plan, however, was statistically associated with a decrease in the use of antibiotics and glibenclamide. Regarding patient outcomes, the RDU Hospital/RDU Service Plan policies were associated with a decrease in hospitalization with drug-induced hypoglycemia but were not associated with hospitalization with asthma. The policies did not decrease the expenditures for non-essential drugs that were reimbursed for outpatients under the Civil Servant Medical Benefit Scheme’s direct disbursement system. It was estimated that the RDU Hospital/RDU Service Plan policies could help saving the drug expenditures by 126 million Baht in total over the years 2015-2018, of which 104 million Baht was attributed to the RDU Service Plan in 2017-2018. As the RDU Service Plan policy was found to be effective in reducing the use of problematic drugs with a high baseline use rate, future interventions should focus on the use of inhaled corticosteroids for controlling asthma. Additional lists of drugs and conditions with priority concerns on safety should be established.
