Cost and cost-effectiveness guidelines: which ones to use?
Given the increased awareness of the importance of cost-effectiveness in health care, there has been a growth in the number of published economic evaluations in recent years. Partly in response to concerns about deficiencies in the methodology of published studies, there has been a growth of interest in guidelines for economic evaluation. This paper reviews the various objectives of economic analyses, and then summarizes the existing groups of guidelines for cost and cost-effectiveness analyses. Finally, it compares and discusses the appropriate uses and limitations of the guidelines, with particular emphasis on those developed for applications in developing countries.
Walker
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Health Policy Unit, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK. damian.walker@lshtm.ac.uk
D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis / Q000379:methods*; D003906:Developing Countries; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D017712:Peer Review, Research