Striking a balance between the effectiveness of treatment and its cost is now one of the main concerns of health managers. The health system is measured by the medical interventions performed (the number of surgeries, for example), and the volume is quantified, but there is no quantification of the results obtained which is where value is really added for patients. When health spending grows without increases in efficiency, its efficiency is decreased or non-existent: this amounts to waste. Creating a system that is sustainable is the future challenge facing healthcare.
In 2006, Michael Porter, an economist and professor at Harvard Business School collaborated with Elisabeth Teisberg, a PhD in Engineering at Stanford, to write the book ‘Redefining HealthCare’ in which they conceived the concept of ‘VALUE BASED HEALTHCARE’. It now serves as the foundational theory for restructuring health systems based on the real value received by the patient, whilst also striving for an improved balance between the financing of services and their real-life effectiveness, i.e. their efficiency.
The cost-effectiveness scale means that not all medicines that are new arrivals on the market, generally associated with a higher cost, will be more effective than cheaper medicines that have proven effectiveness in specific treatments according to medical guidelines. The value to be found in an evidence-based recommendation is to avoid waste, verify prescriptions, and to help make the health system more sustainable.