Resources Repository
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BookPublication 2014Decision Making in Health and Medicine: Integrating Evidence and Values
Decision making in health care involves consideration of a complex set of diagnostic, therapeutic and …
Decision making in health care involves consideration of a complex set of diagnostic, therapeutic and prognostic uncertainties. Medical therapies have side effects, surgical interventions may lead to complications, and diagnostic tests can produce misleading results. Furthermore, patient values and service costs must be considered. Decisions in clinical and health policy require careful weighing of risks and benefits and are commonly a trade-off of competing objectives: maximizing quality of life vs maximizing life expectancy vs minimizing…
Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Decision Analysis | Health Systems | Preferences/Values | Costing Methods | Health Outcomes | Value of Information | Mathematical Models | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Economics/Finance | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global | North America | Europe | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Quantitative Literacy -
Tutorial/PrimerPublication, Teaching Resource 2024Tutorial: Building Decision Trees
This tutorial illustrates the basic steps needed to develop decision trees in Amua using a …
This tutorial illustrates the basic steps needed to develop decision trees in Amua using a disease screening example. It details the process of how to build the structure of a decision tree, parameterize the model with probabilities and relevant outcomes (i.e., life expectancy), evaluate three alternative screening strategies in a baseline scenario, and perform one-way sensitivity analyses to assess the robustness of the results to different parameter values. Amua, the Swahili word meaning “decide”/“solve”, is…
Probability/Bayes | Decision Analysis | Clinical Care | Mathematical Models | Health/Medicine | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional -
Resource PackWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2023Resource Pack: Cost-Effectiveness of Screening and Treatment for Hypertension
Hypertension is a relevant example for teaching clinical decision making, diagnostic test performance, positivity criterion, …
Hypertension is a relevant example for teaching clinical decision making, diagnostic test performance, positivity criterion, and cost-effectiveness analysis. This resource pack provides examples of decision analyses and cost-effectiveness analyses for the management and treatment of hypertension, with a predominant focus on the U.S. Analyses are included that predate the 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Clinical Practice Guidelines, along with more recent examples that followed release of the guidelines. Resources are also included that…
Test Performance | Decision Analysis | Clinical Care | Preferences/Values | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | North America | Europe | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Policy Translation | Quantitative Literacy -
ExerciseNone, Teaching Resource 2024Lab: Giant Cell Arteritis Decision Tree Model
This tutorial walks through the development of a decision tree model focused on Giant Cell …
This tutorial walks through the development of a decision tree model focused on Giant Cell Arteritis. It describes how to build the model structure, assign probabilities and outcomes based on imperfect test characteristics and epidemiologic estimates, evaluate alternative treatment strategies, and conduct one-way sensitivity analyses to assess which model parameters may impact the optimal treatment choice. Amua, the Swahili word meaning “decide”/“solve”, is an open source modeling framework and probabilistic programming language for decision analysis…
Probability/Bayes | Decision Analysis | Clinical Care | Mathematical Models | Health/Medicine | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional -
ReviewPublication 2022Significance of Advanced COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing in Pandemic Control Measures
Over the past two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the scientific community has mounted significant …
Over the past two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the scientific community has mounted significant efforts to combat the highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 virus. Despite substantial progress in vaccines and treatments, leading to lower hospitalization and death rates, the virus has continued to evolve, primarily through mutations. From the onset, diagnostic tests have been crucial in identifying and controlling the virus spread. The scientific world has pioneered various diagnostic techniques, including nucleic acid, antigen, and antibody-based…
Test Performance | Health Systems | Clinical Care | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | North America -
ReviewPublication 2022Diagnostics for COVID-19: Moving from Pandemic Response to Control
Diagnostics are essential in managing the COVID-19 pandemic, with three primary methods for detecting SARS-CoV-2 …
Diagnostics are essential in managing the COVID-19 pandemic, with three primary methods for detecting SARS-CoV-2 infections. Each test type remains vital as we shift from responding to controlling the pandemic. Molecular tests, like PCR, are highly precise in identifying viral RNA and are endorsed by the WHO for confirming cases and guiding public health actions. Antigen rapid tests spot viral proteins and, while less accurate than molecular tests, are quicker, more affordable, simpler, and can…
Test Performance | Health Systems | Clinical Care | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
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 | Test Performance | Clinical Care | 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 | Test Performance | Clinical Care | Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
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 | Test Performance | Health Systems | Technology Assessment | Infectious Diseases | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global | North America