title: Economics, innovation, and quality improvement in neurosurgery.
abstract: Innovation to improve patient care quality is a priority of the neurosurgical specialty since its beginnings. As the strain on health care resources increases, the cost of these quality improvements is becoming increasingly important. The aims of this article are to review the available tools for assessing the cost of quality improvement along with the willingness to pay and to provide a conceptual framework for the assessment of innovations in terms of quality and economic metrics and provide examples from the neurosurgical literature.
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto, 399 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario M5T 2S8, Canada.
authors.forename: Christopher D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Witiw
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto, 399 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario M5T 2S8, Canada.
authors.forename: Vinitra
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Nathan
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurosurgery, Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto, 399 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario M5T 2S8, Canada; Joint Centre for Bioethics, University of Toronto, 155 College Street, Suite 754, Toronto, Ontario M5T 1P8, Canada. Electronic address: Mark.Bernstein@uhn.ca.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bernstein
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends*; D058996:Quality Improvement / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends*
keywords: Cost effectiveness; Cost utility; Economics; Innovation; Neurosurgery; Quality improvement; Willingness to pay