Resources Repository
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Tutorial/PrimerPublication, Teaching Resource 2015Calibration of Complex Models through Bayesian Evidence Synthesis: A Tutorial
This tutorial demonstrates how to implement a Bayesian synthesis of diverse sources of evidence to …
This tutorial demonstrates how to implement a Bayesian synthesis of diverse sources of evidence to calibrate the parameters of a complex model. To illustrate these methods, the authors demonstrate how a previously developed Markov model for the progression of human papillomavirus (HPV-16) infection was rebuilt in a Bayesian framework. Transition probabilities between states of disease severity are inferred indirectly from cross-sectional observations of prevalence of HPV-16 and HPV-16–related disease by age, cervical cancer incidence, and…
Calibration/Validation | Infectious Diseases -
ArticlePublication 2015Controlling Measles Using Supplemental Immunization: A Mathematical Model
The Measles & Rubella Initiative, a broad consortium of global health agencies, has provided support …
The Measles & Rubella Initiative, a broad consortium of global health agencies, has provided support to measles-burdened countries, focusing on sustaining high coverage of routine immunization of children and supplementing it with a second dose opportunity for measles vaccine through supplemental immunization activities (SIAs). Authors estimate optimal scheduling of SIAs in countries with the highest measles burden using an age-stratified dynamic compartmental model of measles transmission. They explore the frequency of SIAs in order to achieve…
Dynamic Transmission | Health Outcomes | Infectious Diseases | Health Systems | Health/Medicine | Asia & Pacific -
ReportPublication 2015Improving Diagnosis in Health Care
Getting the right diagnosis is a key aspect of health care - it provides an …
Getting the right diagnosis is a key aspect of health care - it provides an explanation of a patient's health problem and informs subsequent health care decisions. The diagnostic process is a complex, collaborative activity that involves clinical reasoning and information gathering to determine a patient's health problem. This report, Improving Diagnosis in Health Care, explains that diagnostic errors-inaccurate or delayed diagnoses-persist throughout all settings of care and continue to harm an unacceptable number of patients.…
Test Performance | Probability/Bayes | Health Outcomes | Value of Information | Health Systems | Health/Medicine | North America -
ArticlePublication 2014HIV Cure Strategies: How Good Must They be to Improve on ART?
This article uses a microsimulation model to explore under what circumstances three HIV cure strategies …
This article uses a microsimulation model to explore under what circumstances three HIV cure strategies (gene therapy, chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation (SCT)) would improve efficacy, toxicity, cost and quality of life outcomes compared to current antiretroviral therapy (ART). Assuming a cost-effectiveness threshold of $100,000 per QALY, results show that gene therapy was cost-effective compared to ART with an efficacy of 10%, relapse rate of 0.5%/month, and cost of $54,000. Chemotherapy was cost-effective with an…
Microsimulation | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | North America -
ReviewPublication 2014Valuing Vaccination
Vaccination has led to remarkable health gains over the last century. However, large coverage gaps …
Vaccination has led to remarkable health gains over the last century. However, large coverage gaps remain, which will require significant financial resources and political will to address. In recent years, a compelling line of inquiry has established the economic benefits of health, at both the individual and aggregate levels. Most existing economic evaluations of particular health interventions fail to account for this new research, leading to potentially sizable undervaluation of those interventions. In line with…
Preferences/Values | Priority Setting/Ethics | Costing Methods | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Health Systems | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Global -
ArticlePublication 2014Cost-Effectiveness of Second-Generation Antipsychotics for the Treatment of Schizophrenia
This article, published in Value in Health, describes a Markov model that compares the cost-effectiveness …
This article, published in Value in Health, describes a Markov model that compares the cost-effectiveness of alternate sequences of treatment strategies using second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) for patients with schizophrenia. First-line treatments include one of the four SGAs: olanzapine (OLZ), risperidone (RSP), quetiapine (QTP), and ziprasidone (ZSD). Patients are able switch to another of these antipsychotics as second-line therapy, and only clozapine (CLZ) is allowed as third-line treatment. Model input parameters were obtained from the Clinical…
State-Transition | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Mental Health | Health/Medicine | North America -
GuidelinesPublication 2014EPA Guidelines for Preparing Economic Analyses
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Guidelines for Preparing Economic Analyses provide a framework for …
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Guidelines for Preparing Economic Analyses provide a framework for assessing the impacts of environmental regulations and policies that has been extensively peer-reviewed and is widely-applied both within and outside of the agency. The Guidelines discuss: (1) statutory and executive order requirements for conducting economic analyses; (2) identifying the need for policy action; (3) regulatory and non-regulatory approaches to pollution control; (4) baseline definition; (5) discounting future benefits and costs;…
Preferences/Values | Priority Setting/Ethics | Decision Analysis | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Environmental Health | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | Government/Law | North America | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
ArticlePublication 2014Rise and Fall of HIV in High-Prevalence Countries: A Challenge for Mathematical Modeling
Several countries with generalized, high-prevalence HIV epidemics, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, have experienced rapid declines …
Several countries with generalized, high-prevalence HIV epidemics, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, have experienced rapid declines in transmission. These HIV epidemics, often with rapid onsets, have generally been attributed to a combination of factors related to high-risk sexual behavior. The subsequent declines in these countries began prior to widespread therapy or implementation of any other major biomedical prevention. This change has been construed as evidence of behavior change, often on the basis of mathematical models, but…
Mathematical Models | Health Outcomes | Infectious Diseases | Health/Medicine | Sub-Saharan Africa -
ArticlePublication 2013Using Occupational Injury Data to Estimate VSL
This article discusses the use of occupational fatality rate data to estimate the additional pay …
This article discusses the use of occupational fatality rate data to estimate the additional pay workers receive for bearing greater risks, while controlling for other aspects of the job and characteristics of the worker. This tradeoff rate is typically referenced as the value of a statistical life (VSL). The extensive U.S. labor market literature generating VSL estimates has utilized several fatality rate measures which are typically matched to employment information on workers from large datasets.…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis