A Path to Better Health Outcomes: Kenya Introductory HTA Technical Workshop
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As economic evaluation methods are constantly changing and developing, it is important to stay abreast of the latest developments so that any beneficial new techniques are utilised, where possible, to maximise the public health impact of health economics and health technology assessment (HTA) research.
On Wednesday 19th August 2020, HITAP hosted a webinar with guest lecturers Dr. Paul Tappenden (University of Sheffield) and Dr. Huajie Jin (King’s College London) on whole disease models (WDMs). The seminar provided an introduction to WDMs and explained how these models differ from the ‘piecewise’ economic evaluations that are frequently used in HTA appraisals. WDMs are not a new concept and there have been published WDMs from as far back as the 1980s, but the literature surrounding WDMs has started to grow more rapidly in recent years. It is, however, an infrequently used methodological framework, likely due to the technical expertise, time investment and data requirements involved in producing models of this type, which has meant that many experienced health economists are not familiar with it. There are many advantages to WDMs and circumstances where their development can be more convenient than, and yield superior outcomes, to piecewise models – such as when many aspects of a disease or treatment pathway have not been subjected to economic analysis before, which is the case in many low- and middle-income countries. As both guest lecturers have developed and published WDMs, they discussed case studies of their use in addition to explaining the advantages and disadvantages of this approach.
The workshop saw participation from HITAP’s regional and global networks, with numerous participants joining from the HTAsiaLink and iDSI networks, as well as many others. Ninety-eight participants registered to attend the webinar, and these participants were from an array of different backgrounds, with health department officers, researchers, and university students from every continent.
If you would like to learn more about WDMs, or if you would like to receive a copy of the presentation slides or a recording of the webinar, please contact Chris Painter ([email protected]) or Praewa Kulatnam ([email protected]).