Understanding modelled economic evaluations: a reader's guide for clinicians

Economic evaluations have a long history in health care.1, 2 Full economic evaluations aim to inform decision making through comparing the costs and outcomes of two or more interventions, strategies, programs or policies, to estimate their efficiency via an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio. The premise for conducting economic evaluations is that health care resources are finite, and there is an opportunity cost when resources are allocated to one health care intervention over another.3, 4 In Australia, economic evaluations are important considerations in policy decisions on what should be publicly funded under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS)5 and Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS).6 Furthermore, clinician–researchers are increasingly considering both clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness in evaluation studies and funding applications.