Analyses of HealthcaRe Claims Data

We are looking forward to the June edition of the Zurich R User Meetup, sponsored by and co-organised with Markus Näpflin and Sereina Graber from HELSANA.

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Schedule:
06.15 pm Doors open @ HELSANA >> Route Map <<
06.30 pm Introduction / Welcome by the organizing team (Helsana & ZH RUG)
06.40 pm Talks (see below)
ca 07.45 Take the Stage: Pitching job ads, ideas, events, ...
ca 08.00 - 09.30 pm Apéro sponsored by Helsana
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Dr. med. Sabrina Stollberg, Researcher and Dr. Sereina Graber, Data Scientist @ Department of Health Sciences, Helsana Group, Zurich, Switzerland

Are the sizes of prescribed antibiotic packages in line with guideline recommendations? A real-world analysis based on claims data.

In Switzerland antibiotics are only available in pre-packaged boxes, which may not be conform with the treatment recommendations in guidelines. This may result in leftover pills, leading to improper waste disposal or inappropriate self-medication, both of which can promote the development of antibiotic resistance. This retrospective observational study was based on healthcare claims data from one of the largest health insurance companies in Switzerland. We found large discrepancies between prescribed packages size and guidelines recommendations, with a clear tendency towards overprescribing.

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Tamino Zappalà, Eidg. dipl. Apotheker, PhD student @ Klinische Pharmazie & Epidemiologie, Universität Basel

Changes in the use of hydrochlorothiazide and other antihypertensive drugs in Switzerland in association with the Swissmedic safety alert regarding skin cancer: An interrupted-time series analysis using Swiss claims data.
Long-term use of hydrochlorothiazide increases the risk of non-melanoma skin cancer. We aimed to evaluate potential changes in the use of hydrochlorothiazide in Switzerland after a direct healthcare professional communication (DHPC) in November 2018 by Swissmedic. Our results suggest that the DHPC by Swissmedic in 2018 accelerated a pre-existing decline in the use of hydrochlorothiazide in Switzerland.