Budget Impact Analysis of Integrative Medicine Practices for Pediatric Patients With Chronic Pain

Chronic pain is a leading cause of morbidity in children and adolescents globally but can be managed with a combination of traditional Western medicine and integrative medicine (IM) practices. This combination has improved various critical health outcomes, such as quality of life, sleep, pain, anxiety, and health care utilization. These IM practices include acupuncture, yoga, biofeedback, massage, mindfulness, or any combination of these modalities. The current article developed a budget impact model to estimate the institutional costs of implementing these practices among adolescents.

A decision tree was used to estimate the reduction in hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) use based on a previously published retrospective analysis of children receiving IM practices comparing utilization rates 1-year pre-implementation and post-implementation of IM services (Figure 1). Costs associated with implementing each modality were based on hourly compensation rates for licensed professionals administering each service and equipment associated with delivery (eg, acupuncture needles, biofeedback equipment, and sensors). The cost of each hospitalization and ED visit was derived from the literature. In addition, cost savings were estimated based on government-contracted and commercial-contracted reimbursement rates for each service.

Cost savings were approximated to range from $1344 to $3439 per patient, with even greater cost savings of up to $6000 and $4132 when accounting for governmental and commercial payer reimbursement, respectively.

IM leads to improved pain relief when combined with traditional medicine and yields significant cost savings, thus supporting the routine implementation of IM alongside traditional medicine in health care settings.