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PubMed2000

["Best practice" in health care--or why we need evidence-based medicine, guidelines and health technology assessment].

In this article we describe an interdisciplinary approach that aims at developing a framework for the definition of best practice in health care. Its focus is on Health Technology Assessment (HTA), Evidence-based Medicine (EBM) and Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG), each of which being approaches that increasingly rely on systematic reviews of the best available evidence. The concept is based on an extensive literature search comprising key articles on HTA, EBM and CPG and all relevant related disciplines (e.g. clinical epidemiology, outcomes research). The origin of the term "best practice" is also traced. The framework for the definition of best practice in health care is an iterative loop. It consists of the overriding concept of health care based on reliable evidence. In this concept, HTA, EBM and CPG are related to each other in three "domains", input, implementation and outcome. Information that constitutes evidence is delivered through disciplines and evaluation methods in health care to the input domain. The implementation domain refers to methods to effectively translate evidence into practice as well as to implementation barriers. The outcome domain considers methods to monitor best practice. This implies that indicators of performance at different levels of health care have to be identified which could serve as measures of success. The outcome domain may serve as information source for the input domain (iterative loop). Research recommendations are centered around improving availability and use of evidence (including systematic reviews), and promoting existing activities in best practice.

Biomedical Technology↗

PubMed2006

Diffusion and economic consequences of health technologies in prostate cancer care in Sweden, 1991-2002.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the diffusion of six main health technologies used for management of prostate cancer, to estimate the economic consequences of technological changes, and to explore factors behind the diffusion. METHODS: Data describing the diffusion 1991-2002 were obtained from population-based databases. Costs were obtained from Linköping University Hospital and Apoteket AB. Factors affecting the diffusion of the technologies were explored. RESULTS: Utilization of technologies with a curative and/or palliative aim has increased over time, except for surgical castration. PSA-tests are used increasingly. The total cost of the study technologies has increased from 20 million euros in 1991 to 65 million euros in 2002. Classification of radical prostatectomy revealed a profile associated with a slow/limited diffusion, while classification of PSA-tests revealed a profile associated with a rapid/extensive diffusion. CONCLUSIONS: Several technological changes in the management of prostate cancer have occurred without proven benefits and have contributed to increased costs. There are other factors, besides scientific evidence, that have an impact on the diffusion. Consequently, activities aimed at facilitating an appropriate diffusion of new technologies are needed. The analytical framework used here may be helpful in identifying technologies that are likely to experience inappropriate diffusion and therefore need particular attention.

Diffusion of Innovation↗

PubMed2006

Ethics and health technology assessment: handmaiden and/or critic?

OBJECTIVES: This study examines the content and role of ethical analysis in health technology assessment (HTA) and horizon scanning publications. It proposes that ethical analysis in HTA is of at least two different types: an ethics of HTA and an ethics in HTA. METHODS: I examine the critical differences between these approaches through the examples of the analysis of genetic screening for breast cancer and home blood glucose testing in diabetes. I then argue that, although both approaches subscribe to similar views concerning HTA and ethics, they use different theoretical and methodological traditions to interpret and explain them. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: I conclude by suggesting that we need the interpretive insights of both these approaches, taken together, to explain why ethics has not been able yet to contribute fully to HTA and to demonstrate the scope and complexity of ethical work in this domain.

Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring↗

PubMed2004

Redefining health technology assessment in Canada: diversification of products and contextualization of findings.

OBJECTIVES: While strategies for enhancing the dissemination and impact of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) are now being increasingly examined, the characteristics of HTA production have received less attention. METHODS: This study presents the results of a content analysis of the HTA documents (n = 187) produced by six Canadian agencies from 1995 to 2001, supplemented by interviews with chief executive officers and researchers (n = 40). The goal of this analysis was to characterize the agencies' portfolios and to analyze the challenges these agencies face in responding to the increased demand for HTA. RESULTS: On average, thirty HTA products were issued annually by the agencies. While the bulk of documents produced were full HTA reports (76 percent), two agencies showed significant diversification in their products. Three agencies in particular actively supported the publication of results in scientific journals. Three agencies showed evidence of adapting to different institutional environments by specializing in certain areas (drugs, health services). Overall, a significant portion of the agencies' HTAs contained data on costs (37 percent) and effectiveness (48 percent), whereas ethical and social issues were rarely addressed (17 percent). Most agencies addressed issues and outcomes that did not strictly fall under the typical definition of HTA but that increased the "contextualization" of their findings. CONCLUSIONS: Our discussion highlights four paradoxes and reflects further on challenges raised by the coordination of HTA within large countries and among European states. This study concludes that HTA is being redefined in Canada as HTA agencies offer a more contextualized informational basis, an approach that may prove more compatible with the increased demand for HTA.

Canada↗

PubMed2000

Health technology assessment in Sweden.

Sweden has a welfare system that is based on the fundamental principle that all citizens are entitled to good health and medical care, regardless of where they live or what their economic circumstances are. Health and medical care are considered to be public sector responsibilities. However, there is growing interest in establishing more private alternatives to public care. An important characteristic of the Swedish healthcare system is its decentralization, with a major role for county councils. County councils are now merging into larger administrative units (region). The whole Swedish system is in the process of reform, mainly because of perceptions that it was too rigid and had insufficient patient orientation. An important factor in the reforms is that power in the system will be even more decentralized and will have greater public input. This change is seen as calling for increased central follow-up and evaluation of matters such as social, ethical, and economic aspects. Although the state has decentralized control, it still attempts to control the general direction of the system through regulation, subsidy, recommendations, and guidelines. An important actor in the system is the Swedish Council on Technology Assessment in Health Care (SBU). SBU began in 1987 with assessments of health technologies, but its success has recently led policy makers to extend its coverage to dental care. Health technology assessment is increasingly visible to policy makers, who find it useful in decision making.

Delivery of Health Care↗

PubMed2000

Health technology assessment in France.

The French healthcare system combines freedom of medical practice with nationwide social security. It is compulsory for every legal resident. A range of public and private institutions provide care, and patients have free access to physicians. The health coverage system is characterized by solidarity and universal responsibility. Although the French system is highly regulated, funding of health-related expenses is a chronic social problem. Since the 1996 healthcare reform, the national objective for reimbursed healthcare expenditures is voted by the parliament, and the annual increase of hospital funding is controlled at the regional level. An agency for hospitals has been established in every region, and it quantifies needs indexes for future equipment and beds. However, establishing appropriate reference ratios based on objective assessment is difficult. The idea of basing policy and practice decisions on objective assessment grew for years, until the National Agency for the Development of Medical Evaluation was established in 1989. The 1996 healthcare reform expanded this agency to encompass hospital accreditation and renamed it the National Agency for Accreditation and Evaluation in Health. In March 1999, the National Agency for Health Products was established. It controls the safety of medical products and evaluates products' medical benefits before reimbursement decisions. Health technology assessment is now related to virtually every health policy process in France, and its role increases continually.

Delivery of Health Care↗

PubMed2003

Toward transparency in health technology assessment: a checklist for HTA reports.

OBJECTIVES: As an initiative of the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment (INAHTA), a checklist for assessment reports was developed as a means of improving transparency and consistency in HTA. METHODS: Preparation of a summary of key elements in HTA reports, drawing on experience in preparation of such documents, information from guidelines for HTA, and individual assessments. Review by INAHTA agencies and modification of the summary to reflect the consensus. RESULTS: The resulting checklist includes 17 questions, with supporting detail. General areas covered include preliminary information, why and how the assessment has been prepared, the results of the assessment, implications of the results, and conclusions. CONCLUSIONS: The checklist is intended to be considered by those preparing or using an HTA report. It reflects the views of INAHTA members and is seen as a mechanism to improve the standard of HTA reports, being complementary to the more detailed guidelines on how to conduct assessments.

Canada↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Strategy for health technology.

This paper presents a conceptual framework for improved management to support a pilot demonstration for the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare's new Office of Health Technology, and reports findings and implications of a recent intramural study of HEW's management of diverse technology-based activities such as development, assessment, synthesis, policymaking, and intervention.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗

PubMed2026

Effectiveness of digital health technologies for post-discharge follow-up and management in older adults: a systematic review.

Older adults (≥65 years) are a rapidly growing population that are experiencing a higher number of hospitalisation admissions, longer hospital stays, and greater hospitalisation-related costs than younger adults. There is an important gap in post-discharge care for older adults, and digital technologies, such as video visits, mobile health apps, and remote patient monitoring, may support follow-up and management after hospital discharge. This systematic review examined the effectiveness, feasibility, acceptability, and impact (ie, effects on rehospitalisation, quality of life, mental health, adherence, and patient satisfaction) of technology-based interventions used for the follow-up and management of older adults after hospital discharge. MEDLINE (via PubMed), Scopus, and Web of Science were searched from database inception to January, 2026. The search identified 1972 records, of which 46 studies met the inclusion criteria: older adult populations (aged ≥65 years), a technology-based intervention, post-discharge follow-up or management, and empirical data. Overall, digital post-discharge interventions were reported to be feasible, with good engagement, adherence, compliance, and retention; low dropout rates; and positive patient satisfaction. However, mixed findings were reported regarding rehospitalisation rates and mental health outcomes for virtual care compared with those for traditional care. Digital health technologies might represent a promising step towards improving post-discharge health care and continuity of care for older adults.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2004

[The evidence base of clinical practice guidelines, health technology assessments and patient information as a basis for clinical decision-making].

Valid assessments of benefit and harm of health care interventions are derived from unbiased patient-based clinical trials. Bias sources may affect different study types in different ways, leading to varying validity of study results. The efficient transfer of relevant study results into medical practice is the main objective of evidence-based medicine. To archive this, systematic reviews summarising the study results with respect to a focussed question have proved a powerful tool. They can be used for decision making by individuals as well as evidence source for clinical practice guidelines, health technology assessment and patient information.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗

PubMed2006

[The Danish Health Technology Assessment model. A systematic review of Danish HTAs published by CEMTV from 1998 to 2004].

INTRODUCTION: A common, broad definition of health technology assessment (HTA) has been agreed upon at the international level. The aim of this study was to investigate whether Danish HTA studies actually use this definition in practice. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted as a systematic literature review of the 27 HTA reports published by CEMTV from 1998 to 2004. The reports were analysed according to the four main components of the Danish HTA definition: technology, economics, the patient and the organisation, as well as various descriptive variants. RESULTS: The study showed that the broad definition of HTA is widely used in Denmark and that the partial use of the HTA concept is not used. All the Danish HTA studies included assessments of both technology and economic factors and from a variety of standpoints, and more than 90% also included assessments of patient and organisational factors. The literature review was the most commonly applied assessment method, while RCT and meta-analysis were rarely used. Two-thirds of the HTA studies provided direct policy recommendations. CONCLUSION: In a policy decision-making framework, the Danish HTA reports were found to be more satisfactory than international HTA reports because of their extensive information content and the conscious effort to inform policy decision making.

Decision Making↗

PubMed1997

Health technology assessment: decentralized and fragmented in the US compared to other countries.

This paper presents the results of the first comprehensive international survey to catalogue health technology assessment (HTA) activities. By 1995, there were formal HTA programs in 24 countries established mostly in the late 1980s and early 1990s. European countries generally have one or two federal or provincial HTA programs each, Canada has an extensive network of federal and regional organizations coordinated by a central body and the US has 53 HTA organizations, the vast majority of which are in the private sector. While the commitment of the US government to HTA has been erratic, the private sector has been witness to an expansion of HTA activities by insurance companies, hospitals, medical/device manufacturers, consulting firms and health professional societies. In contrast to other developed countries, the current state of technology assessment in the US is decentralized, fragmented and duplicative. We conclude by discussing the importance of a US HTA agency at the national level.

Canada↗

PubMed2006

Survey on the involvement of consumers in health technology assessment programs.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to obtain information from members of the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment (INAHTA) on their involvement of consumers (patients, carers, and related organizations) in their programs. METHODS: A questionnaire for a survey was developed and sent to member agencies in October 2005. RESULTS: Of the thirty-seven agencies that provided responses, 57 percent involve consumers in some aspects of their HTA programs and 83 percent intend to involve consumers in the future. Summaries of HTA reports that are intended to be easily understood by consumers are prepared by 49 percent of the agencies, and 36 percent involve consumers in dissemination of HTA material. CONCLUSIONS: Most INAHTA members involve consumers in some aspects of their programs, although not always routinely. Involvement seems likely to increase in the future.

Community Participation↗

PubMed2006

Good practice guidelines for decision-analytic modelling in health technology assessment: a review and consolidation of quality assessment.

The use of decision-analytic modelling for the purpose of health technology assessment (HTA) has increased dramatically in recent years. Several guidelines for best practice have emerged in the literature; however, there is no agreed standard for what constitutes a 'good model' or how models should be formally assessed. The objective of this paper is to identify, review and consolidate existing guidelines on the use of decision-analytic modelling for the purpose of HTA and to develop a consistent framework against which the quality of models may be assessed. The review and resultant framework are summarised under the three key themes of Structure, Data and Consistency. 'Structural' aspects relate to the scope and mathematical structure of the model including the strategies under evaluation. Issues covered under the general heading of 'Data' include data identification methods and how uncertainty should be addressed. 'Consistency' relates to the overall quality of the model. The review of existing guidelines showed that although authors may provide a consistent message regarding some aspects of modelling, such as the need for transparency, they are contradictory in other areas. Particular areas of disagreement are how data should be incorporated into models and how uncertainty should be assessed. For the purpose of evaluation, the resultant framework is applied to a decision-analytic model developed as part of an appraisal for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) in the UK. As a further assessment, the review based on the framework is compared with an assessment provided by an independent experienced modeller not using the framework. It is hoped that the framework developed here may form part of the appraisals process for assessment bodies such as NICE and decision models submitted to peer review journals. However, given the speed with which decision-modelling methodology advances, there is a need for its continual update.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗

PubMed2005

International Master's Program in health technology assessment and management: assessment of the first edition (2001--2003).

BACKGROUND: Despite a clear call for greater input from health technology assessment (HTA) in the areas of clinical practice and policy making, there are currently very few formal training programs. The objectives of our Consortium were to (i) develop a master's level program in HTA, (ii) test its content with a group of Canadian and European students, and (iii) evaluate the Program's strengths and weaknesses. OBJECTIVES: This study presents the results of our evaluation of the first edition of the Master's Program (2001--2003). METHODS: The evaluation relied on (i) a self-administered student questionnaire for each course (n = 142), (ii) interviews with students (n = 10), and (iii) interviews with internship supervisors (n = 5). RESULTS: A vast majority of students were satisfied with the course content and particularly appreciated the exercises and materials presented in an intensive format. However, they needed more systematic feedback from faculty members and recommended increasing the methodology content. The six key characteristics of the program are (i) flexible format adapted to the needs of skilled professionals, (ii) continuous interaction between HTA users and producers, (iii) international academic and professional collaboration, (iv) partnership with HTA agencies, (v) global approach to evidence-based methods and practices, and (vi) multidisciplinary approach. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the numerous organizational barriers inherent to creating an international program and several areas for improvement in the Program itself, the Ulysses Project was successful in attaining its objectives. Because there is a growing need for human resources with special training in HTA, further efforts need to be devoted to strengthening the international research capacity in HTA.

Canada↗

PubMed2002

Health technology assessment for medical devices in Europe. What must be considered.

OBJECTIVE: To inform about the specifics of medical devices and the resulting consequences for health technology assessment (HTA) and to present the European industry position on this topic. METHODS: The paper is based on an intensive debate within Eucomed, the European trade association in the field of medical devices, informed by an HTA Experts Group, comprising experts from within and outside the medical device industry. RESULTS: Based on the specifics of medical devices, there are a number of methodologic considerations that require a tailored HTA, differing from the approach taken for, for example, pharmaceutical products. These differences have an impact on the selection of the technology, the timing of the assessment, the study design, and the patient population. CONCLUSION: The European medical device industry can commit to an HTA that takes into consideration the specifics of medical technologies, which is appropriate and fair, and which is done under full participation of industry. Under these circumstances HTA can be a useful tool to support rational decision making in health care.

Cooperative Behavior↗

PubMed1999

Identification and priority setting for health technology assessment in The Netherlands: actors and activities.

This article describes the actual situation at the beginning of 1999 with regard to identification and priority setting for health technology assessment (HTA) on a national level in the Netherlands. For this purpose the literature on HTA published in 1980-1998, mainly national, was thoroughly reviewed. Many policy documents and other reports from the 'grey literature' of identification and priority setting for HTA in the Netherlands were also used. The results show that attempts to identify and set priorities for HTA is a new activity in the Netherlands. The three most important actors in the field are the Health Council, the Council for Health Research and the Health Insurance Council. Methodologies differ depending on the content and scope of each programme. In addition, the methods used are not always transparent and the activities are not co-ordinated. The lack of co-ordination is due to the fact that there is no single organisation that is authorized to identify and set priorities for HTA. Suggestions for improving co-ordination are proposed with the aim of developing a truly national effort in this field, which will enable a more balanced and efficient set of HTA activities.

Decision Making, Organizational↗

PubMed2004

Using health technology assessment to put pharmaceutical care on the political agenda.

Pharmaceutical care is a widely accepted strategy in the world of pharmacy, as well as a topic of interest in pharmacy practice research. Most people in the field would agree that it is unfortunate that so little is known about pharmaceutical care outside the world of pharmacy. There is also wide agreement that the further development of pharmaceutical care requires that policymakers become aware of, accept and ultimately support it. Although attempts have been made, we have not yet managed to capture the attention and support of policymakers, including politicians. In this article we argue that the way to get the attention of policymakers/politicians is by changing the way we communicate with them, as a means of overcoming some of the barriers we normally meet when introducing pharmaceutical care. We suggest that one possible way of getting their attention and subsequent support is by gaining a better understanding of the way policymakers work in general and then adjusting our argumentation for pharmaceutical care to better fit into their rationality and work habits. In this article, we elaborate on this idea and discuss how proponents of pharmaceutical care can use 'health technology assessment' to argue their case.

Biomedical Technology↗