Digital Diabetes Congress 2017

Implementation costs of hospital-based computerised decision support systems: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

The importance of accurately costing implementation strategies is increasingly recognised within the field of implementation science. However, there is a lack of methodological guidance for costing implementation, particularly within digital health settings. This study reports on a systematic review of costing analyses conducted alongside implementation of hospital-based computerised decision support systems.

METHODS

PubMed, Embase, Scopus and CINAHL databases were searched between January 2010 and August 2021. Two reviewers independently screened and selected original research studies that were conducted in a hospital setting, examined the implementation of a computerised decision support systems and reported implementation costs. The Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change Framework was used to identify and categorise implementation strategies into clusters. A previously published costing framework was applied to describe the methods used to measure and value implementation costs. The reporting quality of included studies was assessed using the Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards checklist.

RESULTS

Titles and abstracts of 1836 articles were screened, with nine articles eligible for inclusion in the review. Implementation costs were most frequently reported under the 'evaluative and iterative strategies' cluster, followed by 'provide interactive assistance'. Labour was the largest implementation-related cost in the included papers, irrespective of implementation strategy. Other reported costs included consumables, durable assets and physical space, which was mostly associated with stakeholder training. The methods used to cost implementation were often unclear. There was variation across studies in the overall quality of reporting.

CONCLUSIONS

A relatively small number of papers have described computerised decision support systems implementation costs, and the methods used to measure and value these costs were not well reported. Priorities for future research should include establishing consistent terminology and appropriate methods for estimating and reporting on implementation costs.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

The review protocol is registered with PROSPERO (ID: CRD42021272948).

Diabetes and technology in 2030: a utopian or dystopian future?

The ability of an individual living with diabetes to have human-to-human contact with their healthcare provider is not keeping pace with the number of people developing diabetes. From a futurist perspective, however, this dichotomy of diabetes care represents an opportunity for digital healthcare. The focus of technological innovation is unlikely to be the replacement of the multidisciplinary diabetes team but rather the provision of meaningful individual and family support between clinic visits and, on a larger scale, the facilitation of population health management for diabetes. We can also expect to see new therapies, including implantable drug delivery systems, automated closed-loop systems and miniaturized non-invasive glucose monitoring systems. New digital health technologies will create a 'digital diabetes ecosystem' to enhance rather than devolve care from humans. Concerns related to data privacy and ownership will inevitably rise, thus a future for diabetes care relying heavily on technology is not inevitably utopian. Nevertheless, revolutions in the development of novel sensors, accumulation of 'big data', and use of artificial intelligence will provide exciting opportunities for preventing, monitoring and treating diabetes in the near future.