title: Whom and how to treat: weighing the costs and effects.
abstract: Taking the right decision in health care may be as much an art as a science. However, without exception and whatever the decision, usage is made of scarce resources and they may be used in an alternative way. This implies costs and there comes a time at which the various options have to be assessed in comparison with their effects. Cost-effectiveness aims at informing decision-makers about the balance between the costs and effects of alternative therapies.
authors.affiliation: Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care. University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands. b.a.vanhout@jc.azu.nl
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: van Hout
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D017048:Health Care Costs; D015276:Health Care Rationing; D006801:Humans; D016896:Treatment Outcome