A Health Economic Evaluation of an Artificial Intelligence-Assisted Prescription Review System in a Real-World Setting in China
Author(s)
Di Wu, PhD Candidate1, Yingpeng Qiu, PhD2, Liwei Shi, MSc2, Kejun Liu, Msc2, Xueqing Tian, Msc2, Ping Ren, Msc2, Mao You, Bsc2, Junrui Pei, PhD1, Wenqi Fu, PhD3, Yue Xiao, PhD2.
1Center for Endemic Disease Control, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China, 2China National Health Development Research Center, beijing, China, 3Department of Health Economics, School of Health Management, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
1Center for Endemic Disease Control, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China, 2China National Health Development Research Center, beijing, China, 3Department of Health Economics, School of Health Management, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
OBJECTIVES: Medication safety and irrational prescriptions have long been a concern in China. Primary healthcare institutions (PHIs), particularly village clinics, lack pharmacists and prescription review processes. This study aims to estimate the cost and evaluate the economic impact of a pilot using a artificial intelligence-assisted prescription review system (AIAPRS) in a rural county in China.
METHODS: A pilot project was conducted in Shucheng County, Anhui Province (a central province in China), which installed the AIAPRS in all 21 township health centers and 286 health clinics in 2024. A pre-post study with self-matched controls was conducted to examine the cost-effectiveness of the AIAPRS. The information platform designed for the pilot project facilitated the evaluation of both the quantity of irrational prescriptions across different risk levels and the associated drug expenses from March (established as the baseline) to June. Additionally, from the healthcare system perspective, the unit cost (in RMB per prescription audited) was estimated using the Activity-Based Costing approach.
RESULTS: The introduction of AIAPRS incurred a cost of 2.40 Yuan (CNY) per prescription audited, compared to zero prior to the pilot. During the baseline period, there were 18,527 irrational prescriptions per month, with a drug cost totaling CNY 1.9 million. Following three months of implementation, the number of irrational prescriptions decreased to 11,564 per month, resulting in a total cost of CNY 1.6 million. This reduction represented a 6.0% decrease in the proportion of inappropriate prescriptions (P < 0.05). At the county level, the AIAPRS led to a 3.5% reduction in monthly irrational prescriptions over four months, yielding an average monthly cost savings of 125,929.4 CNY.
CONCLUSIONS: The AIAPRS significantly enhances prescription quality at the grassroots level and reduces costs.
METHODS: A pilot project was conducted in Shucheng County, Anhui Province (a central province in China), which installed the AIAPRS in all 21 township health centers and 286 health clinics in 2024. A pre-post study with self-matched controls was conducted to examine the cost-effectiveness of the AIAPRS. The information platform designed for the pilot project facilitated the evaluation of both the quantity of irrational prescriptions across different risk levels and the associated drug expenses from March (established as the baseline) to June. Additionally, from the healthcare system perspective, the unit cost (in RMB per prescription audited) was estimated using the Activity-Based Costing approach.
RESULTS: The introduction of AIAPRS incurred a cost of 2.40 Yuan (CNY) per prescription audited, compared to zero prior to the pilot. During the baseline period, there were 18,527 irrational prescriptions per month, with a drug cost totaling CNY 1.9 million. Following three months of implementation, the number of irrational prescriptions decreased to 11,564 per month, resulting in a total cost of CNY 1.6 million. This reduction represented a 6.0% decrease in the proportion of inappropriate prescriptions (P < 0.05). At the county level, the AIAPRS led to a 3.5% reduction in monthly irrational prescriptions over four months, yielding an average monthly cost savings of 125,929.4 CNY.
CONCLUSIONS: The AIAPRS significantly enhances prescription quality at the grassroots level and reduces costs.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-05, ISPOR 2025, Montréal, Quebec, CA
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S1
Code
EE236
Topic
Economic Evaluation
Topic Subcategory
Cost/Cost of Illness/Resource Use Studies
Disease
No Additional Disease & Conditions/Specialized Treatment Areas