Resources Repository
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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…
Health/Medicine | State-Transition | Mathematical Models | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Chronic Disease/Risk | Clinical Care | 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.…
Health/Medicine | Technology Assessment | Costing Methods | Test Performance | Mathematical Models | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Maternal/Reproductive Health | Clinical Care | Sub-Saharan Africa -
ArticlePublication 2023Benefits and Costs of COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
Written mid-pandemic, this article evaluates the direct costs and health benefits of requiring COVID-19 vaccinations …
Written mid-pandemic, this article evaluates the direct costs and health benefits of requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for U.S. federal employees and healthcare and private sector workers. These mandates were controversial and some were halted by litigation. If they had been implemented as intended, the net benefits would depend on the course of the pandemic. If a more transmissible variant (such as Omicron) emerges, the net benefits may be large. If the pandemic instead fades, the benefits…
Health/Medicine | State-Transition | Mathematical Models | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Policy/Regulation | Business/Industry | Economics/Finance | Government/Law | North America -
EditorialPublication 2021Scientific and Regulatory Challenges in Designing mHealth Interventions
Scientists looking for innovative ways to deliver health care have long searched for mechanisms that …
Scientists looking for innovative ways to deliver health care have long searched for mechanisms that can enable the right intervention to be delivered at the right time. Traditional delivery mechanisms have been limited both to the availability of a provider (e.g., a physician) and the location of care (e.g., a hospital or outpatient clinic). In recent years, however, numerous technological advancements—including wearable devices, mobile technologies, and the widespread development and use of user-friendly smartphone applications—have…
Health/Medicine | Technology Assessment | Science/Technology | North America -
ArticlePublication 2022Vaccinations versus Lockdowns to Prevent COVID-19 Mortality
This analysis estimated the costs associated with preventing Covid-19 deaths by vaccinations versus lockdowns. Publicly …
This analysis estimated the costs associated with preventing Covid-19 deaths by vaccinations versus lockdowns. Publicly available datasets from the Israeli Ministry of Health were used to model the parameters of the pandemic in Israel. The Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker was used for quantitative data on government policies. Data on the Israeli economy were taken from the Central Bureau of Statistics. The models demonstrate that the first lockdown prevented 1022 COVID-19 deaths at the cost…
Health/Medicine | State-Transition | Decision Theory | Costing Methods | Health Outcomes | Decision Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Policy/Regulation | Economics/Finance | Government/Law | Middle East & North Africa -
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…
Health/Medicine | Technology Assessment | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Infectious Diseases | Clinical Care -
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…
Health/Medicine | Technology Assessment | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Infectious Diseases | Clinical Care | 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…
Health/Medicine | Technology Assessment | Probability/Bayes | Test Performance | Infectious Diseases | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | Global | North America -
ArticlePublication 2019Cost-Effectiveness of Community-Based Childhood Obesity Prevention Interventions in Australia
This study examined the cost-effectiveness of community-based obesity prevention interventions (CBIs) consisting of strategies to …
This study examined the cost-effectiveness of community-based obesity prevention interventions (CBIs) consisting of strategies to promote healthy eating and physical activity for Australian children aged between 5-18 years. A multiple cohort Markov model that simulates diseases associated with overweight and obesity was used to estimate the health benefits, measured as health-adjusted life years (HALYs) and healthcare-related cost offsets from diseases averted due to exposure to the intervention. Health and cost outcomes were estimated over the…
Health/Medicine | State-Transition | Health Outcomes | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Child/Nutrition | Chronic Disease/Risk | Health Systems | Clinical Care | Food/Agriculture | Oceania