Chih Hoong Sin and Ann McMahon describe seven approaches to conducting economic assessments and debunk some jargon along the way

In economic assessment, costs must be reviewed and expressed in monetary terms. Benefits, however, may be expressed differently depending on the specific approach. This article describes the techniques that nurses are likely to come across and use most often, while emphasising that there is no single ‘best’ approach. Different approaches serve different purposes and the choice of approach must be based on pragmatic decision making.