York, UK - A new study addresses the policy needed to consider all relevant evidence for decision making, by providing guidance on the appropriate methodologies to use.
Researchers are typically expected to identify and combine available data to inform the estimation of model parameters for a particular decision problem. The absence of clear guidelines on what data can be used and how to effectively synthesise it may lead to different approaches being used by different modellers, potentially limiting the quality of the model outputs and leading to more uncertain decision making.
The study, “
Deriving Input Parameters For Cost-Effectiveness Modeling: Taxonomy Of Data Types And Approaches To Their Statistical Synthesis”, authored by Pedro Saramago and co-authored by Dr. Andrea Manca and Professor Alex Sutton, developed a taxonomy - classification system - based on possible scenarios faced by the analyst when dealing with available evidence. This taxonomy discusses appropriate methodologies to use based on a combination of factors, including the number of data sources and their format, and whether the analyst wishes to inform single or multiple model parameters. Pedro Saramago and colleagues from the University of York’s Centre for Health Economics and University of Leicester emphasised the proposed taxonomy is designed to be used by health economists as an instrument to support the development of their analysis plan, helping them to fulfill methodological requirements and adequately address the research question at hand.
Pedro Saramago says, “This study not only provides guidance on which methods to use to analyse/synthesise evidence, but also pushes forward the methodological agenda in this field by highlighting gaps in the methods literature.”
Value in Health (ISSN 1098-3015) publishes papers, concepts, and ideas that advance the field of pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research as well as policy papers to help health care leaders make evidence-based decisions. The journal is published bi-monthly and has over 8,000 subscribers (clinicians, decision makers, and researchers worldwide).
International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) is a nonprofit, international, educational and scientific organization that strives to increase the efficiency, effectiveness, and fairness of health care resource use to improve health.
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