Quality Assessment of Economic Evaluations of Suicide and Self-Harm Interventions: A Systematic Review

TY - JOUR

T1 - Quality Assessment of Economic Evaluations of Suicide and Self-Harm Interventions

T2 - A Systematic Review

AU - Madsen, Lizell Bustamante

AU - Eddleston, Michael

AU - Hansen, Kristian Schultz

AU - Konradsen, Flemming

PY - 2018/3/1

Y1 - 2018/3/1

N2 - Background: Death following self-harm constitutes a major global public health challenge and there is an urgent need for governments to implement cost-effective, national suicide prevention strategies. Aim: To conduct a systematic review and quality appraisal of the economic evaluations of interventions aimed at preventing suicidal behavior. Method: A systematic literature search was performed in several literature databases to identify relevant articles published from 2003 to 2016. Drummond's 10-item appraisal tool was used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies. Results: In total, 25 documents encompassing 30 economic evaluations were included in the review. Of the identified evaluations, 10 studies were found to be of poor quality, 14 were of average quality, and six studies were considered of good quality. The majority of evaluations found the interventions to be cost-effective. Limitations: Several limitations were identified and discussed in the article. Conclusion: A notable few economic evaluations were identified. The studies were diverse, primarily set in high-income countries, and often based on modeling, emphasizing the need for more primary research into the topic. The discussion of suicide and self-harm prevention should be as nuanced as possible, including health economics along with cultural, social, and political aspects.

AB - Background: Death following self-harm constitutes a major global public health challenge and there is an urgent need for governments to implement cost-effective, national suicide prevention strategies. Aim: To conduct a systematic review and quality appraisal of the economic evaluations of interventions aimed at preventing suicidal behavior. Method: A systematic literature search was performed in several literature databases to identify relevant articles published from 2003 to 2016. Drummond's 10-item appraisal tool was used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies. Results: In total, 25 documents encompassing 30 economic evaluations were included in the review. Of the identified evaluations, 10 studies were found to be of poor quality, 14 were of average quality, and six studies were considered of good quality. The majority of evaluations found the interventions to be cost-effective. Limitations: Several limitations were identified and discussed in the article. Conclusion: A notable few economic evaluations were identified. The studies were diverse, primarily set in high-income countries, and often based on modeling, emphasizing the need for more primary research into the topic. The discussion of suicide and self-harm prevention should be as nuanced as possible, including health economics along with cultural, social, and political aspects.

U2 - 10.1027/0227-5910/a000476

DO - 10.1027/0227-5910/a000476

M3 - Review

C2 - 28914094

SN - 0227-5910

VL - 39

SP - 82

EP - 95

JO - Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention

JF - Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention

IS - 2

ER -