Economic Evaluations of the Health Impacts of Weather-Related Extreme Events: A Scoping Review

There are various climate risks that are caused or influenced by climate change. They are known to have a wide range of physical, economic, environmental and social impacts. Apart from damages to the physical environment, many climate risks (climate variability, extreme events and climate-related hazards) are associated with a variety of impacts on human well-being, health, and life-supporting systems. These vary from boosting the proliferation of vectors of diseases (e.g., mosquitos), to mental problems triggered by damage to properties and infrastructure. There is a great variety of literature about the strong links between climate change and health, while there is relatively less literature that specifically examines the health impacts of climate risks and extreme events. This paper is an attempt to address this knowledge gap, by compiling eight examples from a set of industrialised and developing countries, where such interactions are described. The policy implications of these phenomena and the lessons learned from the examples provided are summarised. Some suggestions as to how to avert the potential and real health impacts of climate risks are made, hence assisting efforts to adapt to a problem whose impacts affect millions of people around the world. All the examples studied show some degree of vulnerability to climate risks regardless of their socioeconomic status and need to increase resilience against extreme events.

Download Full-text

Extreme Events, Disasters, and Health Impacts in Indonesia

Extreme Weather Events and Human Health ◽

10.1007/978-3-030-23773-8_16 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 227-245

Author(s):

Budi Haryanto ◽

Fatma Lestari ◽

Triarko Nurlambang

Keyword(s):

Extreme Events ◽

Health Impacts

Download Full-text

Scoping review of economic evaluations of assistive technology globally

Assistive Technology ◽

10.1080/10400435.2021.1960449 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 33 (sup1) ◽

pp. 50-67

Author(s):

Sarah Averi Albala ◽

Frida Kasteng ◽

Arne Henning Eide ◽

Rainer Kattel

Keyword(s):

Assistive Technology ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Economic Evaluations

Download Full-text

Towards standardization of economic evaluation research in the youth psychosocial care sector: A broad consultation in the Netherlands

Global & Regional Health Technology Assessment Italian Northern Europe and Spanish ◽

10.33393/grhta.2020.2143 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 117-123

Author(s):

Silvia M.A.A. Evers ◽

Carmen D. Dircksen

Keyword(s):

Economic Evaluation ◽

The Netherlands ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Research Agenda ◽

Outcome Measurement ◽

Evaluation Research ◽

Psychosocial Care ◽

Psychosocial Interventions ◽

Economic Evaluations ◽

Long Run

Introduction: Stakeholders are increasingly interested in the societal impact of psychosocial interventions in the youth sector, in terms of costs and quality of life, as well as in outcomes research. The aim of this broad consultation was to reach consensus regarding the steps to be undertaken to set a research agenda for the Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw) programme. Methods: The broad consultation consisted of an eight-step procedure, including the conceptualization of a consultation document consisting of a scoping review of (mainly) international opinion/methodological literature and an inventory of existing Dutch guidelines and manuals for economic evaluation, a written consultation procedure among a broad range of stakeholders, and a consultation meeting with these stakeholders. Results: In total 21 documents were included in the scoping review. A total of 24 stakeholders participated in the written consultation procedure and 14 stakeholders during the consultation meeting. The methodological issues and challenges, which were ranked in the top 5 by the stakeholders, are (i) outcome measurement, (ii) outcome identification, (iii) cost valuation, (iv) outcome valuation, and (v) time horizon/analytical approach. The existing guidelines and manuals provided guidance for some, but not all, issues and challenges. Discussion and Conclusion: This broad consultation has contributed to a research agenda for the ZonMw programme, which will in the long run lead to the standardization of economic evaluations in this sector in the Netherlands and methodological improvement of economic evaluations in the Dutch youth sector.

Download Full-text

Accounting for Intergenerational Cascade Testing in Economic Evaluations of Clinical Genomics—A Scoping Review

Value in Health ◽

10.1016/j.jval.2021.11.1353 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jason Zischke ◽

Nicole White ◽

Louisa Gordon

Keyword(s):

Scoping Review ◽

Economic Evaluations ◽

Clinical Genomics ◽

Cascade Testing

Download Full-text

The Methodological Quality and Challenges in Conducting Economic Evaluations of Newborn Screening: A Scoping Review

International Journal of Neonatal Screening ◽

10.3390/ijns6040094 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 94

Author(s):

Pasquale Cacciatore ◽

Laurenske A. Visser ◽

Nasuh Buyukkaramikli ◽

Catharina P. B. van der Ploeg ◽

M. Elske van den Akker-van Marle

Keyword(s):

Resource Allocation ◽

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Newborn Screening ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Economic Evaluations ◽

Screening Programs ◽

Methodological Challenges ◽

Life Years

Cost-effectiveness (CEA) and cost–utility analyses (CUA) have become popular types of economic evaluations (EE) used for evidence-based decision-making in healthcare resource allocation. Newborn screening programs (NBS) can have significant clinical benefits for society, and cost-effectiveness analysis may help to select the optimal strategy among different screening programs, including the no-screening option, on different conditions. These economic analyses of NBS, however, are hindered by several methodological challenges. This study explored the methodological quality in recent NBS economic evaluations and analyzed the main challenges and strategies adopted by researchers to deal with them. A scoping review was conducted according to PRISMA methodology to identify CEAs and CUAs of NBS. The methodological quality of the retrieved studies was assessed quantitatively using a specific guideline for the quality assessment of NBS economic evaluations, by calculating a general score for each EE. Challenges in the studies were then explored using thematic analysis as a qualitative synthesis approach. Thirty-five studies met the inclusion criteria. The quantitative analysis showed that the methodological quality of NBS economic evaluations was heterogeneous. Lack of clear description of items related to results, discussion, and discounting were the most frequent flaws. Methodological challenges in performing EEs of neonatal screenings include the adoption of a long time horizon, the use of quality-adjusted life years as health outcome measure, and the assessment of costs beyond the screening interventions. The results of this review can support future economic evaluation research, aiding researchers to develop a methodological guidance to perform EEs aimed at producing solid results to inform decisions for resource allocation in neonatal screening.

Download Full-text

An Economic Evaluation of a Comprehensive School-Based Caries Prevention Program

JDR Clinical & Translational Research ◽

10.1177/2380084419837587 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

pp. 378-387 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

S.S. Huang ◽

R.R. Ruff ◽

R. Niederman

Keyword(s):

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Incremental Cost ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Prevention Programs ◽

Caries Prevention ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Economic Evaluations ◽

Posterior Teeth ◽

School Based ◽

The Cost

Introduction: Current economic evaluations of school-based caries prevention programs (SCPPs) do not compare multiple types of SCPPs against each other and do not consider teeth beyond permanent first molars. Objectives: To assess the cost-effectiveness of a comprehensive SCPP relative to an SCPP focused on delivering sealants for permanent first molars only and to a default of no SCPP. Based on a societal perspective, a simulation model was used that compared the health and cost impacts on 1) permanent first molars only and 2) all posterior teeth. Methods: To calibrate the model, we used data from CariedAway, a comprehensive SCPP that used glass ionomer to prevent and arrest active decay among children. We then evaluated the incremental cost-effectiveness of implementing 3 alternate school-based approaches (comprehensive, sealant only, and no program) on only first molars and all posterior teeth. Probabilistic, 1-, and 2-way sensitivity analyses are included for robustness. Cost-effectiveness is assessed with a threshold of $54,639 per averted disability-adjusted life year (DALY). Results: We first compared the 3 programs under the assumption of treating only first molars. This assessment indicated that CariedAway was less cost-effective than school-based sealant programs (SSPs): the resulting incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) for CariedAway versus SSPs was $283,455 per averted DALY. However, when the model was extended to include CariedAway’s treatment of all posterior teeth, CariedAway was not only cost-effective but also cost-saving relative to SSPs (ICER, –$943,460.88 per averted DALY; net cost, –$261.45) and no SCPP (ICER, –$400,645.52 per averted DALY; net cost, –$239.77). Conclusions: This study finds that economic evaluations assessing only cost and health impacts on permanent first molars may underestimate the cost-effectiveness of comprehensive SCPPs 1) preventing and arresting decay and 2) treating all teeth. Hence, there is an urgent need for economic evaluations of SCPPs to assess cost and health impacts across teeth beyond only permanent first molars. Knowledge Transfer Statement: The results of this study can be used by policy makers to understand how to evaluate economic evaluations of school-based caries prevention programs and what factors to consider when deciding on what types of programs to implement.

Download Full-text