Proposed Research

What are the selection criteria for determining the optimal cost effective methodology within a health technology assessment?

Word Limit: 8,000 (+/- 10%) word report or journal article (word count as outlined in journal)

The aims of this assessment item are:

- To demonstrate that you have been able to construct a research project worthy of investigation;

- That you have selected the most appropriate method for investigating that project; and

- That you have answered the question/s posed at the start of your project to formulate a conclusion.

For both report and journal options:

1. Please upload a copy of your final report/article on the L@G site by no later than week 13 Friday, 5:00 pm.

2. Use the SafeAssign submission point below to upload your draft report. Carefully check and consider the originality report before submitting your final copy. (Please note that there are two submission points, one draft and one final, so that you can review your submission in the draft folder and make necessary changes before submitting your final copy in the final folder).

Proposed Research Title:

What are the selection criteria for determining the optimal cost effective methodology within a health technology assessment?

Research question

In this project, I'm interested in discussing the best use of cost effectiveness assessment techniques within the health technology assessment evaluations. The nature and scope of the cost effectiveness study will be relevant and proportional to the aims and objectives of the individual HTA assignment. Therefore - What are the selection criteria for determining the optimal cost effective methodology within a health technology assessment?

Summary and Background of the project

Health technology assessment (HTA) is kind of a research, which provides information about the ways technologies are used to assess medical, social, ethical and economical implications. It is also known as a multidisciplinary activity, which examines the clinical effectiveness, quality, social and legal consequences, cost effectiveness and other organizational aspects. These technologies include artificial organs, transplantation of organ, contraceptive methods, for critically ill patients there are also life-sustaining technologies with current researches of testing of genetic, therapy of genetic and stem cell research. (Goodman 2004).

The methods of HTA are evolving aspect and are believed to be diversifying their applications. However, among all these, in the recent years, HTA focuses on clinical and cost effectiveness aspects. Thus to measure the efficiency of these technologies cost effectiveness analysis is being carried out. With the pressures that have been increasing on budgets of the health care, many countries have been using economic evaluation for assisting decision making of the optimal use of the struggling health technologies (Drummond et al, 2005).

Cost effectiveness analysis can also be considered a determinant of practice of modern health care because the availability of options such as therapeutic in both public and private health care system must go through a formal HTA. So, there is reevaluation of the clinical and economics consequences and costs of the action for assuring that the most proficient technologies would be used in practice.

Problem Statement

With regards to healthcare, the government as well the private sector is willing to spend huge amount for the technologies, which has also been encouraged by patients who are willing to spend any amount compared to their health. The increasing number of trials of clinic for assessing medicines, devices related to medicine and procedures commonly evaluating economic value of these intercessions. HTA helps to convey the effectiveness of direct and intended outcomes or indirect and unintended outcomes of technologies (Goodman, 2004).
Health technology assessment (HTA) is also called "the bridge between evidence and policy-making", for providing the policymakers with useable, accessible and information based on evidences, which help to direct them about effective allocation of resources. Although numerous technologies are created and have widespread acceptance, concerns are related if they are equally providing cost effectiveness. So, there is reevaluation of the clinical and economics consequences and costs of the action for assuring that the most proficient technologies would be used in practice. It is crucial for HTA to diminish interventions, which are not safe and effective, and the cost proves very high as compared to their benefits.

Rationale for the study

As indicated above the HTA methods are evolving in their aspects. With the production of the health care technologies, it has also been associated with multiplying cost for the health care where health care technologies and assumed to be responsible for the costs. In the US, adopting and usage of technology has believed to be encouraged by the patients and physician incentives for acquiring any probable benefit for health with not much regard to cost. (Goodman, 2004). The increased demand for HTA for both private and public sectors have evolved intense assessment and researches in this topic. Therefore, with the increasing pressure of budgets in the health care, this project focuses to evaluate the optimal Cost effectiveness methodology with regards to HTA.

Methodology

This research project would use both qualitative and quantitative methods for the analysis of data.

The research would do a systematic literature review of particular journal articles with the results and records related to the study done. Systematic literature review is a most useful methodology as it;

• Identify all relevant published evidence

• Synthesize the findings

• Interpret the findings and present a balanced and impartial summary

The SLR would focus on the peer journal articles and published data in the past 5-8 years from the databases like clinical key, PubMed and Medline in the authorized web sites in the Internet. The research is related to the English language articles only. Cost effectiveness analysis would be done using an incremental cost effectiveness ration (ICER) which a widely used phenomenon. It is used because it states the relationship between differences in the cost and varying outcomes of health or effects between the treatment alternatives. (Brodtkorb, 2010).

The data received by cost analysis would be compared with data found from other clinical studies and primary epidemiological study for evaluating health and economic impacts of HTA. It would also use Cost Utility Analysis using Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALY) to measure outcomes in economic evaluation that will be used for case studies measurement. Quality Adjusted Life Years (QALY) unites the period of health state compared to the quality of life for enhancing allocation of health care employing for maximization of QALY earned and also maximizing the social welfare.

Research Goals:

1. Determination of the most appropriate cost effective measures for an Health Technology Assessment

Research Objective

1. To evaluate if additional cost effectiveness in health technology assessment is proportionate to the improvement of health outcomes

2. To what extent the allocation of resources for health cost has been valuable and what are its outcomes.

3. To provide evaluation in economic cost for current decision problems and provide recommendations.

References

• Brodtkorb H.T., Cost-effectiveness analysis of health technologies when evidence is scarce, Linkoping University, Sweden, 2010

• Drummond M., Torrance G., O'Brien BJ, Stoddard G. Methods for the Economic Evaluation of Health Care Programmes. 3rd edn. Oxford University Press; 2005.

• Goodman S. C., Introduction to Health Technology Assessment, USA, 2004.

• Taylor R., Taylor R., What is Health Technology Assessment?, U.K. ,2009.