Scarcity and Resources in Healthcare

Explore the theory of health economics

Health economics examines the challenges of allocating health resources under conditions of scarcity. It is used to study health systems worldwide to help us gain an understanding of what affects decision-making in healthcare.

On this three-week course, you’ll explore key concepts of health economics including health, utility costs, and opportunity costs to understand how different factors affect decisions.

Through the examination of a trade-off activity, you’ll also discover the sorts of problems encountered when it comes to the allocation of scarce resources in healthcare.

Gain an introduction to the economic principles behind health technology assessment

Health technology assessment (HTA) is an essential tool for decision-making. On the course, you’ll explore HTA from an economic perspective.

This will give you a solid introduction before going on to explore what HTA is and the main pillars of universal health coverage (UHC), and how the two interlink.

Define the characteristics of the healthcare market

Delving into the healthcare market, you’ll explore how the decisions made here are different from other markets.

Examining demand, insurance, equity, inequality, and types of health systems, you’ll understand how the healthcare market operates, the numerous factors that need to be considered in decision-making, and how they interlink with HTA.

Explore the Health Minister’s Dilemma

You’ll apply the learning you have gained to a case study called “The Health Minister’s Dilemma”. You’ll look at specific treatments and drugs to demonstrate the application of HTA including malaria, arthritis, HIV prevention, and improving quality of life.

This knowledge will help you start thinking about the challenges healthcare systems face before exploring ways we can address them.

This course is designed for anyone in healthcare who would like to gain an understanding of the role of health technology assessment.

It will be particularly useful for researchers, decision-makers, and healthcare professionals as well as those working in pharmaceutical industries and HTA agencies.