Abstract
Key points:
• Critical care is a scarce resource facing increasing demand.
• Rationing of health care is a reality of all health systems at some level.
• Ethical and economic dimensions of resource allocation in critical care are inseparable.
• Scarce resources need to be used as efficiently as possible to maximize achievable health gains and maintain the sustainability of critical care.
• Well-conducted cost-effectiveness analyses can inform more explicit and transparent resource allocation decisions but need consideration of local context.
• There is evidence that critical care in the UK can be cost-effective.
• Critical care is a scarce resource facing increasing demand.
• Rationing of health care is a reality of all health systems at some level.
• Ethical and economic dimensions of resource allocation in critical care are inseparable.
• Scarce resources need to be used as efficiently as possible to maximize achievable health gains and maintain the sustainability of critical care.
• Well-conducted cost-effectiveness analyses can inform more explicit and transparent resource allocation decisions but need consideration of local context.
• There is evidence that critical care in the UK can be cost-effective.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 390–395 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | BJA Education |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue number | 12 |
| Early online date | 13 Aug 2017 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2017 |