Economic value of family based therapies for children and young people: What do we know?

This paper provides a review of the evidence regarding economic value of family based intervention only when delivered to children and young people with mental health or behavioral disorders. It particularly focuses on the methodology of economic evaluation and describes what economic evaluation for health care interventions is and how it should be conducted. While a number of studies in North America and Europe have simultaneously considered costs and clinical effectiveness or health benefits of family based therapy, few have rigorously conducted an economic evaluation bringing enough evidence to inform service commissioners. We have identified key weaknesses in existing studies and future research should include health care costs beyond costs of delivering therapy, account for potential spillover effects on families, use standardized effectiveness measures such as quality-adjusted life years, and consider cost effectiveness over a longer time horizon.