Canadian study shows promising results on home care cost effectiveness

Researcher Marcus Hollander, PhD, a former director of continuing care in British Columbia, is leading a national effort to compare costs of providing treatment at home to alternative settings including hospitals and nursing homes. The first study compared costs incurred by home care clients to costs incurred by similar persons in skilled nursing facilities and found home care costs were significantly less for home care. The average savings ranged from 25% to 60%. The first of 15 planned research projects on the cost effectiveness of home care to be released during 2000 offers evidence of significant savings associated with providing services in the home as compared to long-term institutions.