EVALUATION OF AN EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTION ON THE PERCEPTION OF COST-EFFECTIVE INFORMATION RELATIVE TO CLINICAL INFORMATION

How clinical information is presented can affect healthcare providers’ decisions regarding pharmaceuticals. With the advent of pharmacoeconomic information, it is not certain how this information may be perceived relative to clinical data. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of a 4 week pharmacoeconomic educational intervention on students’ perception of cost-effective claims relative to clinical information. METHODS: A pre-test post-test design was used to evaluate the impact of an educational intervention on students’ likelihood of recommending the inclusion of an agent on formulary. Data on the same product were presented using four different methods: relative (RR) and absolute risk (AR) reduction, number needed to treat (NNT) and cost-effectiveness (CE) ratio. The four methods were presented as four different therapies. Three scenarios were presented. Students were questioned regarding their knowledge of and confidence in interpreting cost-effective data as well as the importance of clinical, safety, CE and cost data in evaluating drug therapy. RESULTS: Forty-nine third-year PharmD students completed both pre and post-tests. How CE claims were perceived relative to clinical information varied across each of the three scenarios. CE ratio information was ranked first, second and fourth in terms of the likelihood of recommending therapy across the three scenarios relative to clinical data. In two of the three scenarios CE claims were rated most similar to RR. Significant increases in knowledge of and confidence in interpreting cost-effective claims were found (p<0.006). CONCLUSION: While overall, students perceive the value of CE information third in importance to clinical effectiveness and safety information, the presentation of CE information does favorably influence the likelihood of recommending therapy above clinical information.