The effects of nursing interventions were decomposed
into direct, indirect and total effects on complication
rates and hospital direct costs (see Table 2).
IM/SQ Administration had negative direct effects on
both hospital direct costs (b = 0.11) and complication
rates (b = 0.04), which means this intervention
was likely to reduce complication rates with less cost
as illustrated by the SW quadrant (see Figure 2a).
Thus, IM/SQ Administration can be considered a costeffective
nursing intervention. On the other hand, two
nursing interventions – Blood Draw and Incentive
Spirometry – predicted a decrease in complication
rates but at differing increases in cost. So the question
becomes: Which intervention would be more costeffective?
Figure 2b identifies relatively more cost-effective
nursing interventions by providing the distance of each
intervention from the threshold slope line, the quadrant
where each intervention was located and the
rankings on cost-effectiveness. Orthotics Management
was the second most cost-effective intervention,
having the shortest distance in the NE quadrant.