TY - JOUR
T1 - Preventing deaths and injuries from house fires
T2 - A cost-benefit analysis of a community-based smoke alarm installation programme
AU - Yellman, Merissa A.
AU - Peterson, Cora
AU - McCoy, Mary A.
AU - Stephens-Stidham, Shelli
AU - Caton, Emily
AU - Barnard, Jeffrey J.
AU - Padgett, Ted O.
AU - Florence, Curtis
AU - Istre, Gregory R.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited.
PY - 2018/2
Y1 - 2018/2
N2 - Background Operation Installation (OI), a community-based smoke alarm installation programme in Dallas, Texas, targets houses in high-risk urban census tracts. Residents of houses that received OI installation (or programme houses) had 68% fewer medically treated house fire injuries (non-fatal and fatal) compared with residents of non-programme houses over an average of 5.2 years of follow-up during an effectiveness evaluation conducted from 2001 to 2011. Objective To estimate the cost-benefit of OI. Methods A mathematical model incorporated programme cost and effectiveness data as directly observed in OI. The estimated cost per smoke alarm installed was based on a retrospective analysis of OI expenditures from administrative records, 2006-2011. Injury incidence assumptions for a population that had the OI programme compared with the same population without the OI programme was based on the previous OI effectiveness study, 2001-2011. Unit costs for medical care and lost productivity associated with fire injuries were from a national public database. Results From a combined payers' perspective limited to direct programme and medical costs, the estimated incremental cost per fire injury averted through the OI installation programme was $128,800 (2013 US$). When a conservative estimate of lost productivity among victims was included, the incremental cost per fire injury averted was negative, suggesting long-term cost savings from the programme. The OI programme from 2001 to 2011 resulted in an estimated net savings of $3.8 million, or a $3.21 return on investment for every dollar spent on the programme using a societal cost perspective. Conclusions Community smoke alarm installation programmes could be cost-beneficial in high-fire-risk neighbourhoods.
AB - Background Operation Installation (OI), a community-based smoke alarm installation programme in Dallas, Texas, targets houses in high-risk urban census tracts. Residents of houses that received OI installation (or programme houses) had 68% fewer medically treated house fire injuries (non-fatal and fatal) compared with residents of non-programme houses over an average of 5.2 years of follow-up during an effectiveness evaluation conducted from 2001 to 2011. Objective To estimate the cost-benefit of OI. Methods A mathematical model incorporated programme cost and effectiveness data as directly observed in OI. The estimated cost per smoke alarm installed was based on a retrospective analysis of OI expenditures from administrative records, 2006-2011. Injury incidence assumptions for a population that had the OI programme compared with the same population without the OI programme was based on the previous OI effectiveness study, 2001-2011. Unit costs for medical care and lost productivity associated with fire injuries were from a national public database. Results From a combined payers' perspective limited to direct programme and medical costs, the estimated incremental cost per fire injury averted through the OI installation programme was $128,800 (2013 US$). When a conservative estimate of lost productivity among victims was included, the incremental cost per fire injury averted was negative, suggesting long-term cost savings from the programme. The OI programme from 2001 to 2011 resulted in an estimated net savings of $3.8 million, or a $3.21 return on investment for every dollar spent on the programme using a societal cost perspective. Conclusions Community smoke alarm installation programmes could be cost-beneficial in high-fire-risk neighbourhoods.
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U2 - 10.1136/injuryprev-2016-042247
DO - 10.1136/injuryprev-2016-042247
M3 - Article
C2 - 28183740
AN - SCOPUS:85021697777
SN - 1353-8047
VL - 24
SP - 12
EP - 18
JO - Injury Prevention
JF - Injury Prevention
IS - 1
ER -