scholarly journals Editorial - Evaluating Impact of High-Cost Cancer Drugs at Regional Level: The Case of Veneto (Italy)

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Dario Gregori ◽  
Daniele Chiffi

In Italy, the National Health System (NHS) costs are controlled by the regional governments (which are financially accountable for health care expenditure, including hospital drug budgets), but agreements regarding price and discounts are decided in AIFA (Italian Medicine Agency). For this reason, some regional governments ask the pharmaceutical companies to produce a "Health Technology Assessment" before deciding to introduce a drug in the regional hospital list of accepted drugs. Thus, in terms of public policy maker and its decision process, the choice of well-specified points of view is an essential ingredient in the critical assessment of economic evaluation, which becomes more effective when information is presented in the general terms of a cost of illness analysis (COI), or, in a disaggregated way by means of a list of the costs and the outcomes or consequences of the intervention, namely as a cost consequence analysis (CCA). Furthermore, while it has been observed that economic evaluations are usually performed in different countries at national level, in local health care decision making there is lack of health economic data and evaluations, disconnecting economic evaluations from the types of decision that local institutions must normally face. The University of Padova financed a composite and interdisciplinary group of researchers to develop a proof-of-concept like program aimed at serving the Veneto region as a template for the evaluation of the impact of (high-cost) drugs. The program, financed as “Progetti di Ateneo” 2009, (Code CPDA093183/09, "Modello per la valutazione dell'impatto economico, sociale e di salute derivante dall'utilizzo dei nuovi farmaci oncologici nella regione Veneto") has come now to its end and this report represents the outcome of a two-year intense research work. Gratefully, the leading investigators acknowledge the contribution of the entire EIHCD-VeRo Research Project Agreement for their help and cooperation at the various stages of the project development.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfred EBOH ◽  
Steve METIBOBA

Abstract Background: As a way of tackling child mortality, many countries in the world depend on their respective health-care system. But governments of most countries in Africa are yet to provide robust funding of their health-care systems as many people still depend on the out-of-pocket payment to receive health services. Against this backdrop, this study used annual panel data to assess the effect of health-care expenditure and immunisation on the under-five mortality rate in 30 selected African countries for the period 2000-2017. Methods: Multiple regression technique was adopted for the data analysis and the robust fixed regression estimator was preferred to the random effects as determined by Hausman test.Results: The findings indicated that domestic government general health expenditure had a significant negative effect on the under-five mortality rate. However, the effect of domestic private health expenditure on under-five mortality was not significant while external health expenditure had a significant negative effect on under-five mortality rate. The impact of diphtheria immunisation on under-five mortality was significant. Conclusions: Except domestic private health expenditure, government and external forms of health expenditure coupled with diphtheria immunisation were significant factors for the reduction of the under-five mortality in the selected countries.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matloub Hussain ◽  
Mehmood Khan ◽  
Mian Ajmal ◽  
Karim Sajjad Sheikh ◽  
Amiruddin Ahamat

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for the identification, categorization and prioritization of social sustainability barriers in health-care supply chains. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory survey tool is used to identify barriers that are relevant to a health-care supply chain. The identified barriers are grouped into five main categories and experts’ opinions were applied to validate the content. Finally, an analytical hierarchical process (AHP) is used to prioritize the main categories and sub-categories of the barriers. Findings The exploratory phase identified 34 barriers that are relevant to a health-care supply chain. These barriers were grouped into the following categories: poor infrastructure, organizational culture, poor coordination, stakeholder disparity, and uncertainty. Organizational culture and poor coordination were assigned the highest priority through the AHP. Overall, lack of management support, lack of commitment and lack of coordination were found to be the top relevant barriers to a health-care supply chain. Research limitations/implications This study only explored and prioritized the barriers of social sustainability. Future research should explore the impact of the identified barriers on the overall performance of the hospital supply chain. Practical implications The findings of this study may be of value to the local health-care industry in achieving their objectives by overcoming social sustainability barriers, which would in turn facilitate the implementation of social sustainability programs that can positively contribute to the overall supply chain performance. Social implications Social sustainability has grown in importance as a pressurizing issue to push supply chain managers to assess their social impacts on the communities. This is especially important in service supply chains such as health care, where human element is a part of every stage. Originality/value Despite practitioners’ and academics’ growing emphasis on the social dimension of sustainability, the categorization and prioritization of social sustainability practices across health-care supply chains and general service care supply chains have not been addressed. This study aims to cover this gap by contributing to both the academic literature and the practical health-care environment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin-Sheng Shen ◽  
Qun Wang ◽  
Han-Pu Shen

This paper discusses the impact of air pollution on medical expenditure in eastern, central, and western China by applying the fixed-effect model, random-effect model, and panel threshold regression model. According to theoretical and empirical analyses, there are different relationships between the two indexes in different regions of China. For eastern and central regions, it is obvious that the more serious the air pollution is, the more medical expenses there are. However, there is a non-linear single threshold effect between air pollution and health care expenditure in the western region. When air pollution is lower than this value, there is a negative correlation between them. Conversely, the health care expenditure increases with the aggravation of air pollution, but the added value is not enough to make up for the health problems caused by air pollution. The empirical results are basically consistent with the theoretical analysis, which can provide enlightenment for the government to consider the role of air pollution in medical expenditure. Policymakers should arrange the medical budget reasonably, according to its situation, to make up for the loss caused by air pollution.


2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie Ranse ◽  
Alison Hutton ◽  
Toby Keene ◽  
Shane Lenson ◽  
Matt Luther ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundDuring a mass gathering, some participants may receive health care for injuries or illnesses that occur during the event. In-event first responders provide initial assessment and management at the event. However, when further definitive care is required, municipal ambulance services provide additional assessment, treatment, and transport of participants to acute care settings, such as hospitals. The impact on both ambulance services and hospitals from mass-gathering events is the focus of this literature review.AimThis literature review aimed to develop an understanding of the impact of mass gatherings on local health services, specifically pertaining to in-event and external health services.MethodThis research used a systematic literature review methodology. Electronic databases were searched to find articles related to the aim of the review. Articles focused on mass-gathering health, provision of in-event health services, ambulance service transportation, and hospital utilization.ResultsTwenty-four studies were identified for inclusion in this review. These studies were all case-study-based and retrospective in design. The majority of studies (n=23) provided details of in-event first responder services. There was variation noted in reporting of the number and type of in-event health professional services at mass gatherings. All articles reported that patients were transported to hospital by the ambulance service. Only nine articles reported on patients presenting to hospital. However, details pertaining to the impact on ambulance and hospital services were not reported.ConclusionsThere is minimal research focusing on the impact of mass gatherings on in-event and external health services, such as ambulance services and hospitals. A recommendation for future mass-gathering research and evaluation is to link patient-level data from in-event mass gatherings to external health services. This type of study design would provide information regarding the impact on health services from a mass gathering to more accurately inform future health planning for mass gatherings across the health care continuum.RanseJ, HuttonA, KeeneT, LensonS, LutherM, BostN, JohnstonANB, CrillyJ, CannonM, JonesN, HayesC, BurkeB. Health service impact from mass gatherings: a systematic literature review. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2017;32(1):71–77.


2019 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 371
Author(s):  
Linton R. Harriss ◽  
Fintan Thompson ◽  
Kenny Lawson ◽  
Mary O'Loughlin ◽  
Robyn McDermott

Objective The aims of this study were to: (1) use local health data to examine potentially preventable hospitalisations (PPHs) as a proportion of total hospital separations and estimated costs to a large regional hospital in northern Queensland, including differences associated with Indigenous status; and (2) identify priority conditions and discuss issues related to strategic local primary health intervention. Methods A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using Queensland Hospital Admitted Patient Data Collection data (July 2012–June 2014) restricted to 51087 separations generated by 29485 local residents. PPHs were identified from the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) and procedure codes using National Healthcare Agreement definitions. Age-standardised separation rates were calculated using Australian 2001 reference population and associated economic costs were estimated using Australian-refined diagnosis related groups. Results Eleven per cent (n=5488) of all hospital separations were classified as PPH, and most were for common chronic (n=2486; 45.3%) and acute (n=2845; 51.8%) conditions. Because many acute presentations reflect chronic underlying disease, chronic conditions account for up to 76.5% of all PPHs. Age-standardised PPH rates were 3.4-fold higher for Indigenous than non-Indigenous people. Associated 2-year costs were AU$32.7million, which was 10.7% of estimated total health care expenditure for hospital separations, and were higher for Indigenous (14.9%) than non-Indigenous (9.7%) people. Conclusions High hospitalisation rates and costs for common preventable chronic conditions represent opportunities for primary healthcare interventions. In particular, community-level health services need to be more responsive to the needs of local Indigenous families. What is known about the topic? PPH rates are used as a measure of timely access to quality primary health care, and are incrementally higher in regional and remote areas than in major cities. Investment in primary healthcare services has been shown to significantly reduce costs associated with avoidable hospitalisations. What does this paper add? This study used local health data to identify the most common PPH conditions presenting to a large regional hospital in northern Queensland, including estimation of costs and differences associated with Indigenous status. Recommendations are made to strengthen primary healthcare and reduce hospital-related costs. What are the implications for practitioners? Interventions to address high PPH rates should be tailored to meet the needs of the local population. Primary health strategies targeting common chronic conditions provide the greatest opportunity to reduce avoidable hospitalisations and costs in this regional area. Investment in collaborative, evidence-based interventions is recommended and justified, especially for Indigenous Australians.


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