Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Integrated Community Case Management Delivery Models Utilizing Drug Sellers and Community Health Workers for Treatment of Under-Five Febrile Cases of Malaria, Pneumonia, Diarrhea in Rural Uganda.

Background Malaria, pneumonia, and diarrhea continue to be the leading causes of death in children under the age of five in Uganda. To combat the above-mentioned febrile illnesses, integrated community case management (iCCM) delivery models utilizing CHWs or drug sellers have been implemented. The purpose of this study is to compare the cost-effectiveness of delivering iCCM interventions via drug sellers versus community health workers in rural Uganda.MethodologyThis study was a cost-effectiveness analysis to compare the iCCM delivery model utilizing drug sellers against the model using CHWs. The effect measure was the number of appropriately treated U5 children, and data on effectiveness came from a quasi-experimental study in Southwestern Uganda and the inSCALE cross-sectional household survey in eight districts of mid-Western Uganda. The iCCM interventions were costed using the micro-costing (ingredients) approach, with costs expressed in US dollars. Cost and effect data were linked together using a decision tree model and analyzed using the Amua modeling software.ResultsThe costs per 100 treated U5 were US$591.20 and US$298.42 for the iCCM trained-drug seller and iCCM trained-CHW models, respectively, with 30 and 21 appropriately treated children in the iCCM trained-drug seller and iCCM trained-CHW models. When the drug seller arm (intervention) was compared to the CHW arm (control), an incremental effect of 9 per 100 appropriately treated under-five children was observed, as well as an incremental cost of US$292.78 per 100 appropriately treated children, resulting in an ICER of US$33.86 per appropriately treated U5 patient.ConclusionSince both models were cost-effective compared to the do-nothing option, the iCCM trained-drug seller model could complement the iCCM trained-CHW intervention as a strategy to increase access to quality treatment.