Resources Repository
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Resource PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2021Resource Pack: Valuing Health and Longevity in BCA
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, introduces the valuation of …
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, introduces the valuation of changes in health and longevity in benefit-cost analysis. It is targeted towards advanced students and practitioners who have a basic understanding of the benefit-cost analysis framework, as discussed in the Resource Pack: Introduction to Benefit-Cost Analysis. That pack provides a general overview of the approaches that are explored in more detail here, as well as related guidance documents. This pack…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Policy Translation -
ArticlePublication 2020Premature Deaths, Statistical Lives, and Years of Life
This article clarifies some misconceptions about mortality risk and economic valuation. The mortality effects of …
This article clarifies some misconceptions about mortality risk and economic valuation. The mortality effects of exposure to environmental hazards such as air pollution are often described by the estimated number of “premature deaths” and the economic value of an exposure reduction as the number of “statistical lives saved” multiplied by the “value per statistical life.” These terms can be misleading because the number of deaths advanced by exposure cannot be determined from mortality data; it…
Preferences/Values | Health Outcomes | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Environmental Health | Policy/Regulation | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
BookPublication 2018Pricing Lives: Guideposts for a Safer Society
This book describes how the government came to adopt the value of a statistical life …
This book describes how the government came to adopt the value of a statistical life (VSL) approach for valuing changes in mortality risks and argues that its more widespread use would create a safer and more equitable society. The author estimates these values based on how much more money workers would demand to take on more hazardous jobs; his current estimate is $10 million. The book addresses numerous topics such as whether older people’s lives…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Teaching PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2022Teaching Pack: Probability Revision and Bayes
In this teaching pack on Probability Revision and Bayes, students are introduced to the implications …
In this teaching pack on Probability Revision and Bayes, students are introduced to the implications of imperfect information, acquire a conceptual understanding of Bayes theorem, and gain practical skills in performing probability revision. Materials include an instructor's note, videos, companion slides, a glossary, an annotated bibliography, sample exercises, and additional support. Learning Objectives Demonstrate a conceptual understanding of Bayes’ theorem and probability revision. Differentiate between test characteristics (e.g., probability of positive test given…
Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Decision Analysis | Environmental Health | Health/Medicine | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Graphics/Visualization | Quantitative Literacy -
Teaching PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2022Teaching Pack: Using Test Information I
In this teaching pack on Using Test Information I, students review the performance of a …
In this teaching pack on Using Test Information I, students review the performance of a dichotomous test and the relationship between sensitivity and specificity, calculate likelihood ratios to describe test performance, and conduct probability revision using the odds-LR form of Bayes. Materials include an instructor's note, videos, companion slides, a glossary, an annotated bibliography, and sample exercises. Learning Objectives Calculate four conditional probabilities describing the performance of a dichotomous test, and explain the…
Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Decision Analysis | Child/Nutrition | Health/Medicine | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Graphics/Visualization | Quantitative Literacy -
Teaching PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2022Teaching Pack: Using Test Information II
In this teaching pack on Using Test Information II, students are introduced to tests with …
In this teaching pack on Using Test Information II, students are introduced to tests with continuous or categorical results, and calculate the sensitivity and specificity conditional on different 'cutoff points' or 'positivity criterion'. They are introduced to ROC curves and explore the implications of operating at different parts of the curve for any single test. They calculate the optimal positivity criterion given information on the prior, the test performance, and the relative consequences of true…
Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Decision Analysis | Health/Medicine | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Quantitative Literacy -
ArticlePublication 2017Valuing Non-Fatal Risks: Monetary and Health-Utility Measures
This article discusses metrics for valuing environmental, health, and safety policies, which should be consistent …
This article discusses metrics for valuing environmental, health, and safety policies, which should be consistent with both the preferences of affected individuals and social preferences for distribution of health risks in the population. Two classes of metrics are widely used: monetary measures (e.g., willingness to pay) and health-utility measures (e.g., quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), disability-adjusted life years (DALYs)). Health-utility measures impose more structure than monetary measures, with the result that individuals’ preferences often appear inconsistent…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Resource PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2017Resource Pack: U.S. Opioid Epidemic
Opioid misuse and addiction in the United States is an ongoing and rapidly evolving public …
Opioid misuse and addiction in the United States is an ongoing and rapidly evolving public health crisis, requiring an urgent coordinated response and innovative scientific solutions. This resource pack was curated for educators and students interested in how decision analytic methods and tools can be applied to the problem of opioid addiction.
Preferences/Values | Evidence Synthesis | Mathematical Models | Decision Analysis | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Mental Health | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Economics/Finance | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | North America | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Policy Translation -
Tutorial/PrimerPublication, Teaching Resource 2016Cost per DALY Thresholds and Health Opportunity Costs
This policy brief aims to explain the cost per DALY threshold and the concepts of …
This policy brief aims to explain the cost per DALY threshold and the concepts of health opportunity costs, especially aimed at low and middle-income countries. The authors state that an assessment of health opportunity costs is required if the best use is to be made of health and healthcare resources. This requires an assessment of whether the improvement in health outcomes they offer exceeds the improvement in health that would have been possible if the…
Priority Setting/Ethics | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Health Systems | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Global | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Policy Translation