Cost of the quanta SC plus hemodialysis system for self-care in the United Kingdom

Introduction New personal hemodialysis systems, such as the quanta SC+, are being developed; these systems are smaller and simpler to use while providing the clearances of conventional systems. Increasing the uptake of lower-intensity assistance and full self-care dialysis may provide economic benefits to the public health payer. In the United Kingdom, most hemodialysis patients currently receive facility-based dialysis costing more than 36,350 pound per year including patient transport. As such, we aimed to describe the annual costs of using the SC+ hemodialysis system in the United Kingdom for 3x-weekly and 3.5x-weekly dialysis regimens, for self-care hemodialysis provided both in-center and at home. Methods We applied a cost minimization approach. Costs for human resources, equipment, and consumables were sourced from the dialysis machine developer (Quanta Dialysis Technologies) based upon discussions with dialysis providers. Facility overhead expenses and transport costs were taken from a review of the literature. Findings Annual costs associated with the use of the SC+ hemodialysis system were estimated to be 26,642 pound for hemodialysis provided 3x weekly as home self-care; 30,235 pound for hemodialysis provided 3x weekly as self-care in-center; 29,866 pound for hemodialysis provided 3.5x weekly as home self-care; and 36,185 pound for hemodialysis provided 3.5x weekly as self-care in-center. Discussion We found that the SC+ hemodialysis system offers improved cost-effectiveness for both 3x-weekly and 3.5x-weekly self-care dialysis performed at home or as self-care in-center versus fully assisted dialysis provided 3x weekly with conventional machines in facilities.

Automated summary

The development of new personal hemodialysis systems has made dialysis smaller and simpler while maintaining the same effectiveness as conventional systems. Increasing the use of lower-intensity assistance and full self-care dialysis may bring economic benefits to public health payers. The study found that the annual costs of using the SC+ hemodialysis system for self-care dialysis were relatively low in the United Kingdom.