Cost analysis of a hospital-wide selective screening programme for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) carriers in the context of diagnosis related groups (DRG) payment  M.H. Wernitz, S. Keck, S. Swidsinski, S. Schulz, S.K. Veit  Clinical Microbiology and Infection  Volume 11, Issue 6, Pages 466-471 (June 2005) DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2005.01153.x Copyright © 2005 European Society of Clinical Infectious Diseases Terms and Conditions

Fig. 1 Sensitivity analysis for the incidence rate of MRSA carriage at hospital admission. The screening programme becomes cost-effective at the intercept points (break-even points) between the black straight line and the dashed straight lines. If a hospital decides not to operate a screening programme, the costs indicated by the black straight line correspond to the costs required to treat the hospital-acquired MRSA infections that may otherwise have been prevented. The costs for the different screening frequencies apply to a hospital setting with 700 beds and c.23 000 inpatients annually. Clinical Microbiology and Infection 2005 11, 466-471DOI: (10.1111/j.1469-0691.2005.01153.x) Copyright © 2005 European Society of Clinical Infectious Diseases Terms and Conditions