Costs of an Alcohol Measurement Intervention in Three Latin American Countries

A. Solovei*, J. Manthey, P. Anderson, L. Mercken, E.J. Llopis, G.N. Rey, A.P. Gomez, J.M. Trujillo, I. Bustamante, M. Piazza, A.P. de Leon, M. Arroyo, H. de Vries, J. Rehm, S. Evers

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Alcohol measurement in health care settings is an effective intervention for reducing alcohol-related harm. However, in many countries, costs related to alcohol measurement have not yet been transparently assessed, which may hinder its adoption and implementation. Costs of an alcohol measurement programme in three upper-middle-income Latin American countries were assessed via questionnaires and compared, as part of the quasi-experimental SCALA study. Additional to the intervention costs, the costs of three implementation strategies: standard training and clinical package, intensive training and clinical package, and community support, were assessed and subsequently translated into costs per additional alcohol measurement session. Results demonstrated that costs for one alcohol measurement session ranged between Int$ 0.67 and Int$ 1.23 in Colombia, Int$ 1.19 and Int$ 2.57 in Mexico, and Int$ 1.11 and Int$ 2.14 in Peru. Costs were mainly driven by the salaries of the health professionals. Implementation strategies costs per additional alcohol measurement session ranged between Int$ 1.24 and Int$ 6.17. In all three countries, standard training and a clinical package may be a promising implementation strategy with a relatively low cost per additional alcohol measurement session.
Original languageEnglish
Article number700
Number of pages19
JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Volume19
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2022

Keywords

  • alcohol measurement
  • alcohol control
  • costs
  • training
  • community support

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