Journal article
Health service delivery and economic evaluation of limb lower bone-anchored prostheses: a summary of the Queensland artificial limb service's experience
Canadian Prosthetics & Orthotics Journal, Vol.4(2), pp.1-21
2021
PMCID: PMC10443483
PMID: 37614998
Abstract
The emergence of skeletal prosthetic attachments leaves governmental organizations facing the challenge of implementing equitable policies that support the provision of bone-anchored prostheses (BAPs). In 2013, the Queensland Artificial Limb Service (QALS) started a five-year research project focusing on health service delivery and economic evaluation of BAPs. This paper reflects on the QALS experience, particularly the lessons learned. QALS’ jurisdiction and drivers are presented first, followed by the impact of outcomes, barriers, and facilitators, as well as future developments of this work. The 21 publications produced during this project (e.g., reimbursement policy, role of prosthetists, continuous improvement procedure, quality of life, preliminary cost-utilities) were summarized. Literature on past, current, and upcoming developments of BAP was reviewed to discuss the practical implications of this work. A primary outcome of this project was a policy developed by QALS supporting up to 22 h of labor for the provision of BAP care. The indicative incremental cost-utility ratio for transfemoral and transtibial BAPs was approximately AUD$17,000 and AUD$12,000, respectively, per quality-adjusted life-year compared to socket prostheses. This project was challenged by 17 barriers (e.g., limited resources, inconsistency of care pathways, design of preliminary cost-utility analyses) but eased by 18 facilitators (e.g., action research plan, customized database, use of free repositories). In conclusion, we concluded that lower limb BAP might be an acceptable alternative to socket prostheses from an Australian government prosthetic care perspective. Hopefully, this work will inform promoters of prosthetic innovations committed to making bionic solutions widely accessible to a growing population of individuals suffering from limb loss worldwide.
Details
- Title
- Health service delivery and economic evaluation of limb lower bone-anchored prostheses: a summary of the Queensland artificial limb service's experience
- Authors
- Laurent Frossard (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - LegacyDebra Berg (Author) - Queensland Artificial Limb Service
- Publication details
- Canadian Prosthetics & Orthotics Journal, Vol.4(2), pp.1-21
- Publisher
- Canadian Online Publication Group
- Date published
- 2021
- DOI
- 10.33137/cpoj.v4i2.36210
- ISSN
- 2561-987X
- PMID
- 37614998; PMC10443483
- Copyright note
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. All articles are permanently available online to the public without restrictions or subscription fees. All articles are free to be used, cited, and distributed, on condition that appropriate acknowledgment is included. Authors are the copyright holders of their original contributions. The published article is simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons (CC) Attribution License.
- Organisation Unit
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Legacy
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99578807502621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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