A key point to consider in planning an
economic evaluation is the point of view
from which the study should be conducted:
from that of the health service, in which case
only direct costs are considered; or from a
societal viewpoint, in which case indirect
costs (for example, productivity losses arising
from ill health) should also be included. In
general, the societal perspective is preferred,
as it reduces the likelihood that important
costs will be excluded from the analysis
simply because they fall outside the focus of
the study. However, a healthcare manager
faced with a limited budget has an obvious
incentive to concentrate entirely on costs that
have an immediate impact on his own
budget.