Health care costs and changes in subjective health-related quality of life among Finnish adolescents referred to secondary psychiatric out-patient services: a one-year follow-up study

BACKGROUND: There has been growing interest in economic evidence regarding treatment of mental disorders. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this one-year follow-up study was to evaluate the secondary health care costs and changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in three common adolescent psychiatric disorder groups. Further, HRQoL of patients was compared to that of population controls. METHODS: Twelve- to fourteen-year-old adolescents with behavioral and emotional disorders (n = 37), mood disorders (n = 35), and anxiety disorders (n = 34), completed the 16D HRQoL questionnaire when they entered the adolescent psychiatric outpatient clinics (baseline) and at follow-up. The direct secondary health care costs were calculated using a clinical patient administration system. Population controls included 373 same-aged pupils from randomly selected 13 comprehensive schools. RESULTS: The direct secondary health care costs did not differ significantly between the three patient groups. However, in adolescents with mood disorders, this investment generated a significant and clinically important improvement in HRQoL, which was not observed in the other two patient groups. CONCLUSIONS: The costs of health care alone do not necessarily reflect its quality.