Resources Repository
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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…
Technology Assessment | Clinical Care | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2020Incorporating Perspective into Clinical Decisions
Part of a six-part series of articles on clinical decision making, in this article, the …
Part of a six-part series of articles on clinical decision making, in this article, the authors discuss how to incorporate perspective into clinical decisions, explicitly acknowledging that the treating physician is not the only stakeholder in these decisions. The authors use 2 case studies to demonstrate how changes in perspective can alter the clinical decision as well lead to both intended and unintended consequences to the outcomes.
Clinical Care | Preferences/Values | Priority Setting/Ethics | Health Outcomes | Health Systems | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2011Model-Based Analyses to Compare Health and Economic Outcomes of Cancer Control: Inclusion of Disparities
In order to identify strategies that improve both population health and ensure its equitable distribution, …
In order to identify strategies that improve both population health and ensure its equitable distribution, the authors developed a typology of cancer disparities that considers types of inequalities among black, white, and Hispanic populations across different cancers. This paper reports on the typology using an existing disease simulation model of cervical cancer that was calibrated to clinical, epidemiological, and cost data in the United States and presents characteristics important for policy discussions. The typology proposed…
State-Transition | Clinical Care | Priority Setting/Ethics | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Culture/Society | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | North America -
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…
Clinical Care | Probability/Bayes | Mathematical Models | Decision Analysis | Health/Medicine | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional -
ArticlePublication 2023Cost-Effectiveness of Pharmacist Prescribing for Managing Hypertension
This study estimates the cost-effectiveness of implementing a pharmacist-prescribing intervention to improve blood pressure control …
This study estimates the cost-effectiveness of implementing a pharmacist-prescribing intervention to improve blood pressure control in the US. A cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted using a Markov model based on the pharmacist-prescribing intervention used in The Alberta Clinical Trial in Optimizing Hypertension (or RxACTION). Outcomes included cardiovascular (CV) events, end-stage kidney disease events, life years, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), lifetime costs, and lifetime incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Costs were based on reimbursement rates, published literature, national…
State-Transition | Clinical Care | Mathematical Models | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health/Medicine | North America -
ArticlePublication 2008Cost-Effectiveness of Rapid Point-of-Care Prenatal Syphilis Screening in Sub-Saharan Africa
This paper investigates the cost-effectiveness of using rapid point-of-care tests for prenatal syphilis screening among …
This paper investigates the cost-effectiveness of using rapid point-of-care tests for prenatal syphilis screening among pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa, a region with syphilis prevalence rates as high as 17%, and where traditional multi-test screening methods have been challenging to implement. Focusing on newly available rapid point-of-care screening tests, strategies differed by the initial test [rapid plasma reagin (RPR), immunochromographic strip (ICS)], need for confirmation with Treponema pallidum hemagglutination assay, and number of visits required.…
Technology Assessment | Clinical Care | Costing Methods | Test Performance | Mathematical Models | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Maternal/Reproductive Health | Health/Medicine | Sub-Saharan Africa -
ArticlePublication 2023Achieving the Cancer Moonshot Goal
The Cancer Moonshot seeks to reduce age-standardized cancer mortality rates by at least 50% over …
The Cancer Moonshot seeks to reduce age-standardized cancer mortality rates by at least 50% over the next 25 years. This article estimates trends in U.S. cancer mortality for all cancers and the six leading types and reviews opportunities to prevent, detect, and treat these common cancers.
Clinical Care | Priority Setting/Ethics | Mathematical Models | Health Systems | Health/Medicine | North America -
ArticlePublication 2022Systematic Review of Patient Preferences, Expectations, and Values for Management and Treatment of Hypertension
This analysis summarized the evidence on the preferences, expectations, and values of hypertension management and …
This analysis summarized the evidence on the preferences, expectations, and values of hypertension management and treatment in hypertensive patients. The authors reviewed 24 studies involving 8,701 participants. Despite varying areas of focus, common themes included (1) patients often obtain hypertension information from their physicians and prefer shared patient-centered decision-making, and (2) side effects, cost, and convenience are important factors for patients when selecting a treatment regimen for hypertension.
Clinical Care | Preferences/Values | Health Outcomes | Chronic Disease/Risk -
ArticlePublication 2019Global Childhood Cancer Survival Estimates and Priority-Setting: A Simulation-Based Analysis
This modelling study provides estimates of global childhood cancer survival, accounting for the impact of …
This modelling study provides estimates of global childhood cancer survival, accounting for the impact of multiple factors that affect cancer outcomes in children. The authors developed a microsimulation model to simulate childhood cancer survival for 200 countries/territories, accounting for clinical and epidemiologic factors, including country-specific treatment variables, such as availability of chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery, and calibrated the model to empirical data from the CONCORD-2 and CONCORD-3 studies using an Approximate Bayesian Computation approach. The…
Clinical Care | Priority Setting/Ethics | Health Outcomes | Microsimulation | Child/Nutrition | Chronic Disease/Risk | Global