CoPaQ is a questionnaire used to collect data on costs related to patients’ health status. It measures out-of-pocket costs from the patients’ perspective. This resource provides the questionnaire and user guide in French and English.
Health-related costs for patients represent the net out-of-pocket expenses they incur, that is, those not reimbursed by insurers. These costs must result directly from the use of health care and services necessary for treatment or must be related to the impact of patients’ health conditions on their daily lives during the period in question. In addition to distinguishing between these direct and indirect costs, CoPaQ also differentiates between costs for patients and their family members.
Definition of the out of pocket cost
The actual cost incurred by the patient after insurance reimbursement.
- Researcher or research professional
- Healthcare professional
- Social services professional
- Decision-maker or manager
CoPaQ enables the documentation of the economic burden of disease for patients.
Anyone wishing to use CoPaQ to estimate the costs of health care and services from the patient’s perspective can consult the user guide and use the CoPaQ questionnaire. Results from the patient’s perspective can be combined with results from other perspectives to provide an approximate societal perspective.
The CoPaQ user guide can be used, in particular, by members of research teams or independent researchers.
The guide explains how to use the CoPaQ results to calculate the total out-of-pocket cost.
For example, CoPaQ can be used to calculate the cost to patients of living with cancer.
Christian RC Kouakou, Blanchard Conombo, Lucien Coulibaly, Abakar Idriss-Hassan, Matthew Garris, Simon Berthelot, Jason R Guertin, Maude Laberge, Thomas G Poder
*Corresponding authors: Maude Laberge, PhD, Thomas Poder, PhD
Poder TG, Coulibaly LP, Hassan AI, Conombo B, Laberge M. Test-retest reliability of the Cost for Patients Questionnaire. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2022 Jul 11;38(1):e65. doi: 10.1017/S0266462322000460. PMID: 35811410.
Publications
Adaptations of the CoPaQ have been developed for various contexts. Please find below information on these adaptations:
An adaptation for individuals with severe burns: Espinoza-Moya ME, Laberge M, Bélanger L, Chang SL, Poder TG, Moulin VJ, Germain L, Beaudoin Cloutier C, Guertin JR. Adaptation of a standardized self-reported cost questionnaire specific for the severe burn injury population (BI-CoPaQ). Burns. 2024 Dec;50(9):107204. doi: 10.1016/j.burns.2024.07.008. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39322506/
An adaptation for people living with low back pain: Bakaa L, Al-Mosawi F, Bakaa N, de Oliveira LA, Laberge M, Macedo LG. Content validation of the COST for patient questionnaire (COPAQ) for patients with low back pain: a qualitative study. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2024 Nov 5;40(1):e46. doi: 10.1017/S0266462324000515 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39498497/
Here are also some relevant articles:
Validated Tools to Measure Costs for Patients: A Systematic Review