Table 4.

Incremental costs of implementing exercise programme

Cost item	Resource use	Unit cost ($NZ)	Total cost ($NZ)
Training course*
Physiotherapist (hours)	37.5	19.17	539
Three exercise nurses
Time (hours)	37.5 each	16.46 per hour	1852
Travel to Dunedin (km)	2220	0.62	1110
Accommodation (nights)†	5	110	650
Materials	Folders	28.21	85
Transport in Dunedin	Visits to 15 clients	0.62 per km	84
Recruitment, programme prescription and follow up
Time for 3 nurses	0.5 equivalent full time, 1 nurse 18 months, 2 nurses 19 months	Average 16.58 per hour	67 963
Transport for 3 nurses (km)	4609	0.62	2858
Doctors' time‡	46 doctors, 0.25 hours each	40.39	1858
General practice staff time	26 practices, 0.75 hours each	13.11	341
Typing lists and letters (hours)	78	18.88	1473
Postage (stamps)	768	0.40	307
Stationery and photocopying	Paper, envelopes	0.10	373
Telephone	Local calls, 1 “call minder,” 2 mobiles		2676
Ankle cuff weights	480	Average 17.40	8352
Instruction booklets	330 folders, paper	7.50	2475
Supervision of programme
Physiotherapist:
Time (hours)	703	19.17	13 484
Travel to centres (km)	2808	0.62	1741
Accommodation†	4 visits to each centre	Average 102.50	410
Telephone calls	108	Average 6.77	731
Three exercise nurses:
Time	4 meetings, telephone calls	Average 16.58 per hour	1607
Telephone calls	82	Average 7.11	583
Travel to Dunedin (km)	2586	0.62	1603
Overhead costs§		21.85% of resource use	24 724
Total cost			137 878
Average cost per participant for 1 year programme			418

Average exchange rate in 1998, $NZ1.00=32p. 

^*Costs for training course were divided equally among the four nurses at course (one nurse was from trial reported in accompanying paper). 

^†Includes food allowance. 

^‡Time spent by doctors was valued using weighted average price in 1998 for consultation “person over 65 without card”; item used in calculation of consumers price index. 

^§Includes office accommodation, financial and administration services, depreciation on equipment.