Health care utilization and cost-effectiveness analyses in prevention studies in the mental health care field

Current literature reports a serious lack of research on the cost-effectiveness of health promotion and prevention programs in the mental health care field. This article gives an overview of the general health economic approach in mental health promotion and describes the methodology of analyzing the budget consequences and cost-utility of innovative stress prevention programs. The programs were implemented and tested in four studies aiming for stress-reduction at the workplace, in educational settings and relapse prevention.