title: A guide to economic evaluation: methods for cost-effectiveness analysis of person-level data.
abstract: The authors introduce economic evaluation with particular attention to cost-effectiveness analysis. They begin by establishing why health care decisions should be guided by economics. They then explore different types of economic evaluations. To illustrate how to conduct and evaluate a cost-effectiveness analysis, a hypothetical study about the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder with psychotherapy versus pharmacotherapy is considered. The authors conclude with recommendations for increasing the strength and relevance of economic evaluations.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Research on Inner City Health and St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, and the Department of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. jeffrey.hoch@utoronto.ca
authors.forename: Jeffrey S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hoch
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004358:Drug Therapy / Q000191:economics; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006801:Humans; D017059:Models, Econometric; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000191:economics; D019057:Quality-Adjusted Life Years; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000191:economics / Q000628:therapy