The impact of absorbent floor in reducing hip fractures : A cost-utility analysis among institutionalized elderly in Sweden

Sammanfattning: This paper analysis the cost-utility, measured in cost per QALY gained, of impact absorbent flooring that reduce hip fractures among institutionalized elderly in comparison to standard flooring. The study is based on experimental data from an elderly institution, where the absorbing floor was installed in 2010. Using a decision tree, the costs and benefits related to the new flooring are calculated on a one year basis, resulting in an incremental cost per QALY of 713327 SEK for the base case. Although the experimental data shows that there is an impact of the new flooring in reducing hip fractures a conclusion whether the policy is cost-effective or not can hardly be drawn. Sensitivity analysis based on a simulation of 5000 cases suggests that the result is robust.