Prof Andrew Street COW 3.03

This course is compulsory on the Executive MSc in Health Economics, Outcomes and Management in Cardiovascular Sciences. This course is not available as an outside option.

The course will serve as an introduction to major issues in the economics of health and health care. It will provide participants with a strong understanding of the role economics can play in health policy and health system administration. It will provide a framework with which to understand the demands placed on the health care system, the changing nature of health care supply and delivery, the interactions between patients and providers of health care, and the performance and productivity of the health system. Participants will also be introduced to essential statistical concepts in the evaluation of clinical interventions. Seminar sessions will focus on current policy debates in health care drawing on the theory and evidence from the lectures, augmented by readings from both academic and popular sources.

15 hours of lectures and 10 hours of seminars in the MT.

This will include 10 x 90 minutes of interactive lectures and 5 x 120 minutes of case-study based seminars.

An 800-word “mock” blog entry for The Conversation, which covers policy-relevant issues and often has academic contributors. A series of topics will be provided to students to choose from.

Course textbook

Bhattacharya, Jay, Timothy Hyde, and Peter Tu. Health economics. Palgrave Macmillan, 2013.

Essential pre-readings

Nyman JA. The Value of Health Insurance. Chapter 9 Jones A (ed) Elgar Companion to Health Economics, second edition, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham 2012.

Geoffard P-Y. Incentive and Selection Effects in Health Insurance. Chapter 10 Jones A (ed) Elgar Companion to Health Economics, second edition, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham 2012.

Rice T. The Physician as the Patient’s Agent. Chapter 25 Jones A (ed) Elgar Companion to Health Economics, second edition, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham 2012.

Iversen T, Luras H. Capitation and Incentives in Primary Care Chapter 26 Jones A (ed) Elgar Companion to Health Economics, second edition, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham 2012.

Other (70%) and other (30%).

The two assessments will be:

1. “Journal referee report” for a health economics paper, which will include 2 elements: a summary and critical appraisal of the paper (1500 words) and a peer-review report with suggestions for improving the paper (1000 words). This assessment will evaluate the students’ ability in summarising, applying, and critically appraising the relevance of health economics concepts to a health policy.

2. Individual-based video presentation. Students will be asked to record a video on their own on a topic that will be assigned to them. This will assess the students’ ability to describe, summarise, apply, critically appraise, and communicate the concepts learned in class to a particular case study.