This educational presentation will describe the importance of studying MRI cost effectiveness as it relates to population-level health outcomes, patient-centered care, and costs to the healthcare system. Examples of work in MRI, spanning innovation and common clinical practice, will serve to illustrate applications of cost effectiveness analysis. Cost effectiveness analysis, a standardized means of comparing medical interventions and tests, quantifies the clinical effectiveness relative to cumulative costs. Furthermore, research goals can be prioritized based on targets for maximized value.
As we implement and disseminate MRI innovations in clinical care, cost effectiveness analysis can provide useful feedback on population-level impact and further research needs. With growing emphasis on health care value and effectiveness by policymakers and payers, diagnostic imaging use is subject to scrutiny. Yet, even widespread MRI applications often lack assessment of population-level benefits and harms. For cost effectiveness, the benefits and harms of testing include the cumulative costs and clinical consequences of each strategy for diagnostic evaluation.
The value, or the health outcomes relative to the cost, requires comparative effectiveness and outcomes research for solid estimates of these benefits and harms. These cost effectiveness measures are a standardized means of comparing various health interventions and tests for their value to a society. Artificial intelligence innovations for improved efficiency, better resilience to breath-holding issues, and more in-depth diagnostic capability are just a few examples of innovations that can bring quantifiable value. Whether to justify increased cost for better treatment outcomes or to quantify the benefits of MRI for a specific patient group, these research methods summarize the ability of a diagnostic test to improve patient care.
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