A note on the relative importance that people attach to different factors when setting priorities in health care

Objective To explore whether and to what extent people wish to give differential priority when asked to choose between providing health care treatment for different individuals or groups, on the basis of a range of factors, ranging from health gain to the number of dependants a person has.

Design A sample of people resident in York self-completed a questionnaire.

Setting The City of York.

Participants Twenty-three members of the general public and 29 undergraduate students.

Main outcome measures The relative importance of factors that people think should be taken into account when choosing between providing health care treatment for individuals or groups.

Results The results suggest that health gain and the consequences for health without treatment are two of the most important considerations.

Conclusions A sample of the general public and undergraduate students wish to take account of a number of personal characteristics when setting priorities in health care.