Predicting medication costs and usage: expenditures in a juvenile detention facility

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Pediatric Health
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Juvenile detention facilities house youth with diverse healthcare needs.
• Prescription medication use in detained youth is a significant public health concern.
• Understanding medication patterns and costs is crucial for resource allocation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze prescription medication patterns in a county juvenile detention facility.
• To determine the types and costs of medications prescribed to detained youth.
• To identify demographic differences in medication prescribing and associated costs.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of one year of prescription medication records.
• Inclusion of data from 799 male and 227 female detained youths.
• Examination of medication types, quantities, and associated costs.

Main Results:

• 7% of detained youth received psychotherapeutic agents, comprising 83% of the medication budget.
• 14% of males and 27% of females were prescribed medications, some receiving up to 23 different drugs.
• Psychotherapeutic agents, antibiotics, and allergy/asthma medications constituted over 93% of total costs.

Conclusions:

• Psychotherapeutic agents represent a substantial portion of medication costs in juvenile detention.
• Significant medication prescribing occurs in this population, with notable gender-based cost disparities.
• Further research into appropriate psychotropic medication use and cost-effective management is warranted.