Is disease management relevant in Europe: some evidence from the United Kingdom

Actions or approaches by the pharmaceutical industry, going under the gener al label 'disease management', have become very popular in the USA. However , there appears to be uncertainty about what exactly 'disease management' i s and about the extent to which it can be applied in Europe. A postal quest ionnaire on disease management was sent out to senior personnel in the UK N HS and pharmaceutical industry. The survey aimed to explore the meaning of the term 'disease management' and its relevance to the NHS, assessing how p erspectives differed between the two groups of respondents. Views on the ba rriers to the increase of disease management within the NHS were also sough t. Finally, respondents were asked to indicate any involvement in joint dis ease management ventures. Most respondents agreed that disease management i ncluded estimating the total cost of managing a disease (92%) and the devis ing of clinical guidelines (97%). When asked about the particular role a ph armaceutical company might play, the level of agreement dropped in both gro ups of respondents, but by a greater degree in the NHS group. In defining d isease management for themselves, just 4% of respondents referred to a 'par tnership' between the NHS and the pharmaceutical industry. It would seem th at, for the majority of respondents, 'joint ventures' are a possible, but n ot a necessary, means of undertaking disease management. Almost 30% of NHs respondents and 55% of industry respondents indicated that their Authority or company had experience of a joint venture in disease management. The maj or perceived barrier to an increase in disease management was NHS suspicion , of pharmaceutical companies (86% of all respondents), with the difficulty , in contracts coming trp contracts coming a close second (79%). (C) 1999 E lsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.