[The future economic burden of dementia on health and social services]

(Demenssygdommes fremtidige økonomiske belastning af social- og sundhedsvaesenet.)

Full Abstract

INTRODUCTION:
Demographic changes in Denmark over the next 15 years will result in an increased number of elderly people and of individuals with dementia. As a result this will increase the demand for health care and social services. The aim of this study was to shed light on the likely economic consequences of this development.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:
A simple static, comparative model based on Danish incidence and cost data for different age groups and different levels of dementia severity was developed. The model projected the costs of the health and social services for treatment and care of people with dementia up to the year 2020.

RESULTS:
The future demographic changes and an increasing number of people with dementia will result in a 30% increase in health and social service costs due to dementia. This increase will be lower if individuals with dementia have a higher mortality rate than other individuals. If annual productivity gains of 1-3% can be achieved, the future cost (in real prices) could be reduced.

CONCLUSION:
The Danish health and social services will in the future be faced with increased costs for the treatment and care of people with dementia. This could be achieved through productivity gains, an increased level of financing or prioritisation of services that provide good value for money.

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Author information

Author/s: Sørensen, Jan (J); Gudex, Claire M (CM); Andersen, Christian Kronborg (CK);

Affiliation: Syddansk Universitet, Center for Anvendt Sundhedstjenesteforskning, Odense C. jas(-atsign-)cast.sdu.dk

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; English Abstract; Journal Article

Journal: Ugeskrift for laeger (Ugeskr Laeger), published in Denmark. (Language: dan)

Reference: 2006-Oct; vol 168 (issue 40) : pp 3432-6

Dates: Created 2006/10/11; Completed 2006/10/17; Revised 2006/11/15;

PMID: 17032611, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Community Health Services - economics
Cost of Illness
Dementia - economics; epidemiology
Denmark - epidemiology
Efficiency, Organizational - economics

Efficiency, Organizational - economics
Health Care Costs - trends
Health Services - economics
Health Services Needs and Demand - economics; trends
Humans
Incidence
Models, Economic

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