Technology-dependent children in the community: definitions, numbers and costs

Objectives To assess available data on the numbers of technology-dependent children living at home in the UK and estimate the costs of caring for them . Design Data were obtained from all known secondary sources, including surve ys of children with specific conditions known to specialist paediatric depa rtments and the database of applicants to the Family Fund Trust. The costs of all services received by three hypothetical exemplar 'case study' childr en were calculated. Results All existing sources of data have some shortcomings. Taking these s hortcomings into account, it is estimated that there may be up to 6000 tech nology-dependent children living at home. They appear to be disproportionat ely young and may be distributed unevenly between different regions of the UK. The total service costs of caring for each child will vary according to the types of technologies involved and local patterns of services, but may be as high as pound 150 000 a year. Conclusions Because of the very high costs of services, routine information on the numbers of technology-dependent children discharged home is urgentl y needed. This should include details of the duration of technology depende nce and the local area to which the child is discharged. New opportunities for joint service planning and purchasing should improve the co-ordination of services for these children.