CLAHRC YH Health Economics and Outcomes Measurement (HEOM) Newsletter Issue 3, October2017
Welcome to the CLAHRC HEOM newsletter Welcome to the 3rd edition of the CLAHRC YH HEOM theme newsletter. In this issue we have focused on the research work of our five PhD students, Hannah Penton (University of Sheffield), Paolo Candio (University of Leeds), Francesco Ramponi, Dina Jankovic and Richard Mattock (University of York). Their research is looking at the methodology for evaluating health economics across sectors, where the impact on health can be initiated from outside a traditional NHS setting. You can read further details on their research below. We provide a flavour of the publications emerging from our CLAHRC HEOM projects, with a look ahead to research that will be published in the coming months. We also detail who you can contact to find out more about the HEOM research projects. We would also like to say thank you and goodbye to Sam Pye, Clerical Officer, who has left the theme. If you would like further information about our theme, including other projects that we are working on please visit: http://tinyurl.com/ybf9cvr6
PhD Students Dina Jankovic is in the third year of her PhD at the Centre for Health Economics, University of York. Before starting her PhD, she completed a degree in Pharmacy at the University of Manchester and an MSc in Health Economics at the University of York. Her PhD focuses on the use of expert elicitation as a tool for characterising uncertainty in cost-effectiveness decision models. Her research has involved developing a cost-effectiveness decision model for a podiatry intervention designed to reduce the rate of falling in the elderly, and conducting an elicitation exercise with 41 clinical and research experts to populate the model where data was not available. During her PhD she’s learned to code, she said “I’ve gained invaluable practice in (and an appreciation of) data collection. I’ve presented my work at five universities; and I’ve worked with clinicians, health
researchers, statisticians and health economists. Overall it’s been a very stimulating experience. The competence I have gained will undoubtedly be invaluable in my future career”.
Hannah Penton’s PhD investigates the validity and acceptability of existing quality of life (QoL) and wellbeing measures in older people using quantitative and qualitative methods. QoL measures are used to measure the benefits of health interventions for NHS resource allocation. This process is being extended to social care where wellbeing measures may be appropriate. Valid and acceptable measures are required to ensure optimal resource allocation for older people. Modern psychometric item response theory is used to assess whether questions are valid and behave equivalently in older vs younger adults. Interviews and focus groups will ask older people whether measures are relevant, valid and acceptable in assessing their QoL and wellbeing.
CLAHRC YH The Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care Yorkshire and Humber
CLAHRC HEOM Newsletter Issue 3 October 2017
HEOM Research and Publications Researchers on the HEOM theme have recently published papers on extrapolating costs, population health checks, informing reimbursement decisions and digital health interventions. Over the coming months we will be releasing the outcomes from our research on self-reported and routinely collected electronic data for trail-based evaluations; Impact of specialist rehabilitation services on hospital length of stay; Costs included in economic valuation and their impact on decision uncertainty for stable coronary artery disease; and Quantifying the relationship between capability and health in older people. If you would like to find out more about our project research, please contact: Dr Gerry Richardson, University of York—
[email protected] Dr Laura Bojke, University of York —
[email protected] Dr Tracey Young, The University of Sheffield —
[email protected]
PhD Students...contd. Paolo Candio’s PhD is centred on the incorporation of multi-sector perspectives for economic evaluation of public health (PH) interventions, using a case study methodology. PH interventions often impact on multiple budgets and generate costs and consequences falling across multiple sectors. Paolo is assessing the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a real -world PH programme, Leeds Let’s Get Active (LLGA). LLGA was a match-funded, City Council-led physical activity programme providing universal, enhanced access (free at off-peak times) to 17 public leisure centres located in the more deprived city areas. Paolo’s PhD shall shed light on how the inclusion of spill-over effects and different perspectives affect the economic evaluation outcomes and their uncertainty. Richard Mattock is investigating the cost effectiveness of screening for post-natal depression. Post-natal depression can reduce the quality of life of mothers and negatively affect their attachment to their child. Children with poor attachment relationships
are more likely to have problems with cognitive, social and emotional development. Theoretical and empirical evidence links development with a variety of health and economic outcomes that occur later in life. Richard is adding to the existing evidence base by adapting and updating a previously published HTA report to include the lifetime economic outcomes associated with children whose mothers suffer from post-natal depression. Francesco Ramponi’s research looks at the methods for the economic evaluation of public health interventions. Usual analyses are mostly focused on health measurement, but such a narrow perspective potentially underestimates the full impact of the intervention. Francesco’s aim is to develop and implement a framework which extends a ‘traditional’ costeffectiveness analysis to include evaluations across sectors and over time, and inequality analyses. To show the important implications of this research for future evaluations, the framework will be explored using a brief alcohol intervention. Such an intervention can affect not only alcohol misusers’ health, but also their criminal behaviour and productivity. For further details of their projects please visit our webpage: http://tinyurl.com/j8h3hsy
The University of Sheffield 2016, a partner of the Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care Yorkshire and Humber (CLAHRC YH) This newsletter is part of independent research by the National Institute for Health Research Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care Yorkshire and Humber (NIHR CLAHRC YH). The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors, and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR or the Department of Health.