Cost-effectiveness analysis of the implementation of advanced practice nursing: how to move forward?

Abstract

This essay explores possibilities of advances in cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) in advanced practice nursing (APN). The arguments were structured according to the current health landscape, the need to evaluate APN practices as health technology and evidence and recommendations for conducting CEA. Benefits of APN were evidenced in the improvement of indicators such as mortality, hospital readmission, among others. However, the absence of a standard of care, combined with the existence of different models and short time horizon interfered with the estimation of direct costs. The studies on CEA were inconclusive, mainly due to the lack of cost per unit of success and calculation of the CEA ratio. In the context of the APN, to conduct CEA that really contributes to robust results, thus subsidizing decision-making requires a joint effort of training institutions, delimitation and standardization of practice by regulatory agencies of the profession and health services, based especially on accreditation policies.