Resources Repository
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ArticlePublication 2020Infectious Disease Pandemic Planning and Response: Incorporating Decision Analysis
During a pandemic, decisions must be made under rapidly changing, uncertain conditions. Despite advances in …
During a pandemic, decisions must be made under rapidly changing, uncertain conditions. Despite advances in analytical methods for gaining early situational awareness (i.e., of a disease’s transmissibility and severity) and for predicting the likely effectiveness of interventions, a major gap exists globally in terms of integrating this information in policy documents. The authors argue that mathematical and statistical models are important tools for pandemic planning and response. Once an outbreak of pandemic potential has been…
Mathematical Models | Health Systems | Decision Analysis | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global -
ArticlePublication 2021Cost-Effectiveness of Hypertension Treatment by Pharmacists in Black Barbershops
The Los Angeles Barbershop Blood Pressure Study (LABBPS) examined the effectiveness and cost of a …
The Los Angeles Barbershop Blood Pressure Study (LABBPS) examined the effectiveness and cost of a one-year pharmacist-led hypertension care intervention in Black-owned barbershops in Los Angeles County, focused on non-Hispanic Black men with uncontrolled hypertension. Using a discrete event simulation, the researchers projected the 10-year health outcomes and health care costs associated with the intervention compared to a control group. The costs and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) were calculated from a health care sector perspective, with…
Mathematical Models | Clinical Care | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine | North America -
ArticlePublication 2020Testing for SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. Recently, the UK government has made …
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. Recently, the UK government has made antibody testing available to anyone wanting it, even if there is no clinical indication. The purpose of this article is to provide guidance for when to consider antibody testing in individuals with and without symptoms suggestive of current or past SARS-CoV-2 infection. Key points made by the authors include: (1) antibody testing is likely to be most useful 2 weeks…
Probability/Bayes | Clinical Care | Test Performance | Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine -
ToolInteractive 2020COVID-19 Antibody Tests: Calculator for Interpreting Test Results
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. This interactive calculator, linked to the article …
Antibody testing can determine previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virus. This interactive calculator, linked to the article below* on antibody testing for SARS-CoV-2 virus, allows users to vary the prior probability of infection, the sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing, and the specificity of SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing. Key points made in the article accompanying the interactive include: (1) antibody testing is likely to be most useful 2 weeks after infection, (2) sensitivity and specificity will vary over time and…
Probability/Bayes | Clinical Care | Test Performance | Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
Resource PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2024Resource Pack: Ethiopian Health Decision Sciences
This resource pack provides a curated set of peer-reviewed articles that represent the growing evidence …
This resource pack provides a curated set of peer-reviewed articles that represent the growing evidence base for decision making and priority setting in Ethiopia - with an emphasis on improving health, reducing inequity, and preventing health-related impoverishment. Curated by Dr. Stéphane Verguet at the Center for Health Decision Science, most of the papers reflect work done as part of the Disease Control Priorities-Ethiopia (DCP-E) project. The pack provides scholarship that spans maternal-child health, vaccine-preventable disease, infectious…
Mathematical Models | Health Systems | Priority Setting/Ethics | Costing Methods | Health Outcomes | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Health/Medicine | Sub-Saharan Africa | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Policy Translation -
EditorialPublication 2020Waiting for Certainty on COVID-19 Antibody Tests — At What Cost?
This perspective anticipates the availability of serologic antibody testing and considers its potential usefulness in mitigation …
This perspective anticipates the availability of serologic antibody testing and considers its potential usefulness in mitigation policy to reduce COVID-19 transmission. For example: Could we screen for serologic antibodies as a proxy for possible immunity and identify people who could return to the workplace with less severe mitigation measures? The authors acknowledge the uncertainties raised by many policy actors, including the WHO, such as, "Do antibodies confer immunity and, if so, for how long? How accurate is…
Probability/Bayes | Health Systems | Test Performance | Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global | North America -
ArticlePublication 2020Bayes' Theorem, COVID-19, and Screening Tests
This article reviews the implications of increased testing for COVID-19 using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain …
This article reviews the implications of increased testing for COVID-19 using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) through the application of Bayes’ Theorem for three hypothetical, stylized case scenarios. The scenarios involve three patients with a low, moderate, and high pre-test probability of COVID-19 infection. The category of low probability would include "asymptomatic individuals in a presumed low prevalence environment" and might vary from 10 to 20%. The category of moderate probability would include "individuals…
Probability/Bayes | Clinical Care | Test Performance | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine -
Tools/ModelsInteractive, Teaching Resource 2020Interactive Graphic: Interpreting a COVID-19 Test Result
Currently, the most common diagnostic test for COVID-19 relies on reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction …
Currently, the most common diagnostic test for COVID-19 relies on reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and most often uses samples obtained from the respiratory tract by nasopharyngeal swab. This interactive graphic demonstrates the influence of the prior probability of COVID-19, the test sensitivity (i.e., the probability of a positive test conditional on disease presence), and the test specificity (i.e., the probability of a negative test conditional on disease absence) on the post-test probability of…
Probability/Bayes | Clinical Care | Test Performance | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | High School | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Graphics/Visualization | Quantitative Literacy -
ArticlePublication 2020Clinical Decision Making: Using a Diagnostic Test
This article is part of a 6-part series on clinical decision making. The authors use …
This article is part of a 6-part series on clinical decision making. The authors use two clinical examples to review the principles of interpreting diagnostic test results. They outline an approach that can be used to determine how to select and apply tests and their results to the practice of internal medicine. Topics covered in the two case studies include sensitivity and specificity, positive predictive and negative predictive value of tests, and how to estimate…
Probability/Bayes | Clinical Care | Test Performance | Health/Medicine