Cost analysis for guideline implementation in prevention and early treatment of pressure ulcers.

One of the goals of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) is to improve the quality of medical care by developing and disseminating clinical practice guidelines. One indication of the effectiveness of a clinical guideline is the relationship between the costs of current practice and the costs of using the guideline. Using four model cases of patients at high risk for pressure ulcers, the costs of implementing the appropriate prevention and treatment procedures for each model were identified and compared to current practice costs. On the average, the overall cost of implementing the guideline is not much different from that of current practice.