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S Heasell

Publications and source records attributed to S Heasell.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Economics and euthanasia.

This paper argues that a cost/benefit-type economic analysis of whether or not to prohibit euthanasia should not be undertaken by health services managers unless ethical issues have been resolved to a particular conclusion. A conclusion on ethical grounds in favour of the prohibition of euthanasia renders the consideration of economic criteria redundant. The case of the German euthanasia programme in the 1930s is used to illustrate the danger of attempting to combine ethical and economic criteria into a single decision rule.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Economics of evidence about nurse specialization.

If nurse specialization is to flourish within the expected financial constraints then advocates will have to focus attention on research-based evidence about clinical practice that is relevant to clients. This article examines the kinds of evidence that might be sought and considered before decisions are made about the allocation of scarce resources to nursing services. It is suggested that reasoned decision making for health services in that context would require convincing evidence that each particular commitment of resources to nursing can be expected to contribute as a set of inputs towards the best possible achievement of overall objectives for health services within the anticipated constraints on resources available. If so, it would be reasonable to expect that those with resources to allocate will seek and will consider evidence about costs associated with nursing, including adverse risks, as well as that about relevant benefits from nursing. Advocates for nursing, or for specialisms among nurses, would then do well to demonstrate that they take evidence about both benefits and costs seriously when presenting their case, rather than dismiss either as being merely an annoying and unreasonable distraction.

Budgets↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Job satisfaction and employment prospects for nurses.

A recent media campaign has emphasized the benefits to the NHS of attracting nurses back to work. In this article, the potential for success from such a recruitment drive is acknowledged but the balance of assessment is redressed, to reflect a broader economic perspective which takes into account resource limitations. The costs of these initiatives, as well as the benefits, are considered in terms of how else the resources involved could be used. A call is made for nurses, and other individual decision makers engaged in nurse recruitment, to consider benefits with all relevant costs systematically, even if reliable information is limited. That approach would be in the spirit of the changes to NHS governance that are currently being introduced and could help to ensure that the health of patients overall is served as well as possible by the contribution to it made by nurses.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗