An alternative to QALYs: the saved young life equivalent (SAVE)

An alternative to QALYs: the saved young life equivalent (SAVE) Erik Nord Quality adjusted life years (QALYs) are based on the concept that the effectiveness of a health care pro- gramme is greater the more significant the health improvements it provides, the longer the patients get to enjoy the improvements, and the more patients who are helped.'`4 The concept is put into practice in the so called health status index approach: life years in different states of illness or dysfunction are assigned values on a scale of 1-0 (healthy) to 0.0 (dead). The values reflect the quality of the states and allow morbidity and mortality improvements to be combined into a single weighted measure-that is, QALYs gained. For example, if a programme improves the health of individual A from 0 5 to 0 8 for one year and extends the life of individual B for five years in a 0-6 state, then a total of 3-3 QALYs will be gained ((0 8-0 5)+(5OxO6)=3 3).