Educators Of"health Care Providers

,. . This introduction to the major concepts of cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is intended,for individuals involved in fiealth care provider education who are attempting to measure the costs and benefiti of their educational activities. Ater. tracing the development of CBA, the paper dafines it as afi attempt o quantify and compare the zpanditures for a project with the valu of the finished project and identifies the ways information gained'-fom CBA can be used. In 1ddition, the paper looka at problems associated, with the/use of CBA, such as the difficulty in assigning dollar values to attitude changes, aesthetic values, and increased quality of life; the costs of the analysis; and the inability of tBA to take social and environmental effects Into consideration. Nezt, a summary is provi4ed of methods used to determinelfized and variable costs, and examples are cited of less,expensive,ways of providing health care training, such as cooperative programs, student self-training, the i elimination of umnecessary units, and'student-financed training. The . following section of the paper looks/at ways of determining direct, indirect, and long-terk benefits, coridering problems in evaluating revenue-producing services; citing p ssible' assessment areas such as employee turnover'and effectiveness of training; and reviewing a CBA, \ of a physical fitness program as an examPle of setting objectives and determining benefits. A glossary of terms and bibliography conclude the paper. (AFC), *t******************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * from the original document. * ***********************************************************************