IFEDH - Innovative Framework for Evidence-based Decisionmaking in Health Care/1

Research areas: Health economics, HTA-methods & steering instruments

Project team: Philipp Radlberger
Duration: October 2010 - March 2011

Suggested by: Drahtwarenhandlung GmbH (lead partner), supported by Austrian Research Promotion Agency / FFG mbH
Language: German, English
Publication: WP 1.2 "Standardised working in HTA" (HTA Project report No. 44a) - https://eprints.aihta.at/932

Background
The extraordinary high amount of 20-25 billion Euros of annual turnover in the Austrian health system has increasingly raised the questions of cost-effectiveness and evidence based decision making in health care. Health technology assessment is already intensively dealing with these issues, especially on the level of single interventions. Still, due to lack of data, assessments often include modelling or simulation techniques in order to analyse long-term effects. This, in turn requires increasing cooperation of experts from different fields of science such as HTA, statistics, data management, modelling & simulation as well as visualisation. A common understanding on contents, methodology and terminology needs to be developed. In Austria, such a common understanding has hardy been elaborated in a systematic way so far.

Aims of project
It is the main aim of the IFEDH project to support evidence based decision making in health care by a service tool which helps profiting from existing potentials in HTA, modelling, simulation, statistics and data analysis. Therefore common standards will be defined in order to facilitate cooperation and interdisciplinary work. Along three practical examples the tool will be tested regarding his applicability.

LBI-HTA took the leading role in work package 1 (WP1) as well as the execution of WP1.2 and WP2.1. Both WPs will address state of the art standards in HTA.
AP1.2 is focussing on quality standards of the discipline in general and on the evaluation of vaccination programmes in particular. The aim is to publish an English review.
AP2.1 pictures the terminology of simulation and modelling in the specific context of HTA. The aim is to create a glossary in English and German language, considering the most relevant international sources.

Research objectives
AP1.2:
What are general principles of standardised work in HTA?
Which standards exist to examine data validity in primary studies?
Which standards exist to examine data validity in systematic reviews?
Which standards exist to examine economic studies?
Which standards in HTA-manuals exist to examine modelling?
Which standards explicitly refer on evaluating vaccination programmes?
Which are the limitations that HTA is subject to, regardless of quality standards?

AP2.1:
Which are the German and English linguistic standards according to HTA criteria in matters of definitions and terminology in modelling and simulation?

Methods
AP1.2 & AP2.1: Hand search based on methodological manuals of leading international institutions as well as hand search in other relevant literature.
AP1.2: Description of sources, list of standards and critical synthesis of results in English language;
AP2.1: Table of identified terms in the form of a glossary;

Time schedule / milestones
Oct – Dec 2010: literature screening, draft of AP1.2 and preliminary version of AP2.1
Jan 2011: review by HVB  and final version of AP2.1
Feb 2011: preliminary version of AP1.2
Mar 2011: review by HVB and final version of AP1.2, final versions of both documents