Upcoming

September 9-11, 2019

Finite public resources coupled with an increasing demand for health care means that decisions must be made about how to most efficiently allocate the scarce health care budget. This requires information about costs and benefits of health care. Health economists have developed techniques that can provide values for health care benefits. A technique that is increasingly used for this purpose is the discrete choice experiment (DCE) method.

DCEs are now widely applied to value health and health care. Furthermore, DCEs are a potential method to recognise the importance of patient centred care, and to value patient experiences in the delivery of health care. DCEs are also applied more widely to consider population and health care professionals’ preferences in many areas of health policy.

Who Should Attend

This short course is aimed at those interested in the application of DCEs in health economics and will focus on the practical and theoretical issues raised when applying the technique. The workshop will include group work sessions. No knowledge of economics or DCEs is assumed. Prior experience with regression analysis may be an advantage.

Aims of the Course

1. Introduction to the theoretical basis for, and development and application of discrete choice experiments (DCEs) in health economics.
2. Hands on experience of the design of DCEs, questionnaire development, data input, analysis and interpretation.
3. An update on methodological issues raised in the application of DCEs.

Event Details

Date: September 9 – 11, 2019
Time: The workshop starts at 9:00 am MT on September 9 and finishes at 1:00 pm MT on September 11 with lunch to follow.
Location: Banff, Alberta
Venue: Banff Conference Centre

Registration

Please register for this course using the following link: https://www.eiseverywhere.com/ehome/392142/832742/

Registration Deadline: August 1, 2019

Notes

Each participant will receive a full documentation pack containing:

• the teaching materials
• group work and answers
• copy of the book “Using discrete choice experiments to value health and health care” by M Ryan, K Gerard and M Amaya-Amaya
• a bibliography of relevant resources

Participants are encouraged to bring their own laptops with trial Software versions of NGene (www.choice-metrics.com) and STATA (www.stata.com) pre-installed.

For more information, please contact Cassandra McLaughlin: cassandra.mclaughlin@ucalgary.ca.

This course is hosted by the Health Economics Research Unit, University of Aberdeen, the O’Brien Institute for Public Health, University of Calgary, and the Institute of Health Economics.

In health economics the use of discrete choice experiments (DCEs) to elicit patient, physician, and public preferences is increasing. If you can define your research/policy questions in terms of attributes or characteristics of a healthcare good or service, then DCEs may be able to help you. Are you interested in what factors (attributes) are important in the delivery of health services and policies; how individuals trade across these attributes (how much of one attribute are they willing to give up to have improvements in other attributes); what is the probability of uptake of a new service with defined attribute levels?

Come along to this panel session to hear DCE experts share their knowledge on how the DCE method can be used, what policy questions it can help inform, and what policy relevant information can be generated from such studies. We will draw on studies using the DCE method to explore: risk benefit trade-offs to inform regulatory decision-making for drugs and treatments; physician preferences to address workforce planning and recruitment and retention challenges; and the application of DCEs in the development of decision aid tools to promote shared decision-making and person centered care. We will conclude with a reflection on the validity of preference data generated from DCEs, and provide guidance on study design and analysis to ensure valid responses.

Presenters

Dr. Deborah Marshall is a Professor at University of Calgary, who is actively engaged in advancing the methods and applying stated preferences research. She is a member of the Stated Preferences Methods Task Forces of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research to develop good research practice methods for discrete choice experiments in health applications.

Dr. Mandy Ryan is the Director of the Health Economics Research Unit at the University of Aberdeen. Her research interests centre around ensuring health economic valuation methods take a person centred approach. She has expertise in the development and application of discrete choice experiments in health economics.

Dr. Verity Watson leads the Methods of Benefit Valuation theme in the Health Economics Research Unit at the University of Aberdeen. Her research interests focus on the valuation of non-market goods such as healthcare, and the understanding how people respond to hypothetical valuation tasks.

Dr. Luis Enrique Loria is a Research Fellow at the Health Economics Research Unit at the University of Aberdeen. His research is focused in the application of discrete choice experiments (DCE) as decision aid tools for patients. He also has a research interest in the use of reference dependent choice models.

Event Details

Date: Thursday, September 12, 2019
Time: 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm MT
Location: University of Calgary

Registration 

In-Person Registration

Please click the following link to register and attend this event in-person:   https://rounds3septinperson.eventbrite.ca

Online Registration

Please click the following link to register to view the live webcast:   https://rounds3septwebinar.eventbrite.ca/

*Registration is required for both in-person and online attendance for this event.*

Upcoming Rounds

Please note, the NOAHE Rounds schedule is tentative and subject to change.

• September 12, 2019 – UCalgary
• October 16, 2019 – IHE
• November 20, 2019 – UAlberta
• January 15, 2020 – UCalgary
• February 19, 2020 – IHE
• March 18, 2020 – UAlberta
• April 15, 2020 – UCalgary
• May 20, 2020 – IHE

For further information or questions related to this event, please email us at NOAHE@ihe.ca.

The NOAHE Health Economics and Outcomes Research Student-led Seminars are presented by the Network of Alberta Health Economists in collaboration with the University of Alberta School of Public Health Journal Club.

Seminar Objectives

The NOAHE Health Economics and Outcomes Research Student-led Seminar Series seeks to promote discourse related to health economics research, allowing participants to gain insight and consideration across a range of university departments, while encouraging collaboration and networking opportunities.

Event Details

Date: September 17, 2019
Time: 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm MT
Presenter: Ryan Au
Facilitator: Erin Kirwin
Primary Venue: University of Alberta – Room ECHA 3-420
Secondary Venue: University of Calgary – TBD
Paper for Discussion: “Time Traveling Is Just Too Dangerous” but Some Methods Are Worth Revisiting: The Advantages of Expected Loss Curves Over Cost-Effectiveness Acceptability Curves and Frontier

Seminars

The primary venue for the Student-led seminars will alternate between the University of Alberta and the University of Calgary. GoToMeeting links will be provided for students attending via the secondary (remote) venue. All seminars run from 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm MT unless otherwise indicated.

• Session 1 – September 17, 2019 – Room ECHA 3-420, University of Alberta
• Session 2 – October 22, 2019 – University of Calgary
• Session 3 – November 19, 2019 – Room ECHA 4-440, University of Alberta
• Session 4 – January 28, 2020 – University of Calgary
• Session 5 – February 25, 2020 – University of Alberta
• Session 6 – March 24, 2020 – University of Calgary

Registration

To attend the Student-led Seminar, please register either in-person or online:

• In-person registration:  https://heor1.eventbrite.ca
• Remote registration:  https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/148807389

You can also dial in using your phone:

• Canada (Toll Free): 1 888 455 1389
• Canada: 1 647 497 9391
• Access Code: 148-807-389

The Network of Alberta Health Economists and the NOAHE Health Economics and Technology Assessment Rounds are supported financially and in-kind by Alberta Health, through the Health Funding and Economics Capacity (HFEC) Grant. Please note that the views expressed in this series and other deliverables associated with NOAHE are not necessarily representative of any particular organization involved.

Please join us for a free 3-day intensive course, “Introduction to Applied Health Economic Modelling,” covers introductory applications of cost-effectiveness analysis for resource allocation decisions, sensitivity analysis, economic modelling for cost-effective analysis (Markov Models), and decision uncertainty (re: the cost of doing nothing).

This course is intended for students enrolled in graduate studies programs in Alberta. Students will have an opportunity to meet, network, and work closely with senior health economists, while developing and demonstrating skills and technical knowledge/expertise.

Event Details

Date: September 23 – 25, 2019
Time: 8:30 am – 5:00 pm MT, with a catered lunch from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Location: Edmonton, Alberta
Venue: Institute of Health Economics, 1200 – 10405 Jasper Avenue, T5J 3N4

Registration

Please register for this course using the following link: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/introduction-to-applied-health-economics-modelling-september-2019-tickets-58400452325

Note

NOAHE will provide transportation for Calgary-based students – details to follow. Registrants will be responsible for their own accommodations during this course. A laptop is mandatory to attend this course, due to the interactive nature of the material that will be taught.

A certificate of attendance will be offered to all participants who complete this course.

The Alberta Health Economics Study Group (AHESG) aims to bring together Alberta based health economists for a day of lively discussion about current research and will provide an opportunity for networking. The objective of AHESG meetings is to promote a study group atmosphere despite large numbers. All papers are pre-circulated and discussed in 45 minute-long sessions using discussants rather than author presentations. This session will focus on the research of students and trainees and will be a great opportunity to get feedback on early draft papers. The AHESG welcomes people from all backgrounds with an interest in Health Economics.

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Erin Strumpf, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health and Department of Economics, McGill University

Erin Strumpf, PhD, is an associate professor at the Department of Economics and the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health at McGill University and a founding member of McGill’s Public Policy and Population Health Observatory (3PO). Dr. Strumpf holds a PhD in Health Policy and Economics from Harvard University, and a BA from Smith College. She is a William Dawson Scholar at McGill University and holds a Chercheurboursier Junior 2 from the Fonds de Recherche du Québec – Santé.

Dr. Strumpf and her research team focus on evaluating the impacts of health and social policies on the health and wellbeing of individuals and populations, as well as on the performance of the health care system. They use methods for causal inference, principally quasi-experimental designs, to estimate the effects of interventions and reforms in real-world settings and actively collaborate with decision makers to generate relevant, usable knowledge to improve population health and health care system performance. The team has strong expertise using administrative health data and large-scale surveys to evaluate the impact of health interventions and reforms in Quebec and Canada, as well as other jurisdictions around the world.

Event Details

Date: November 4 - 5, 2019

Dinner: Monday, November 4
Venue: Ampersand 27
Location: 10612 82 Ave NW, Edmonton, Alberta
Time: 7:00 pm MT

Seminar: Tuesday, November 5
Venue: University of Alberta, (City Room, Peter Lougheed Hall)
Location: 11011 Saskatchewan Dr NW, Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2B4 (Map link)

Registration

Register to attend the Alberta Health Economics Study Group 2019!

• Registration deadline: September 27, 2019
• Registration link: https://ahesg2019.eventbrite.ca

Agenda

• Alberta Health Economics Study Group 2019 Agenda – Coming soon

Please Note: NOAHE will provide transportation and one night’s accommodations for Calgary-based registrants – details to follow.

AHESG 2019 – Call for Abstracts – Papers & Poster Presentations

The call for abstracts for both papers and poster presentations for the Alberta Health Economics Study Group 2019 opened on April 29, 2019. The deadline for paper and poster presentation abstract submissions is September 6, 2019. With respect to papers, if your abstract is selected you will be asked to submit a draft paper by October 10, 2019. Please see below for more information on abstract criteria.

Abstract Criteria

• 400 words maximum
• The following abstract structure is preferred, although a different structure can also be used:
• Aims
• Methods
• Data
• Results (if any)
• Conclusions
• Note: Please do not include tables/graphics/diagrams/symbols in your abstract.
• Abstracts of work in progress are acceptable - abstract submissions do not require results.

Submission Instructions

Please submit abstracts, and/or questions, to NOAHE@ihe.ca. Abstract submission deadline is September 6, 2019.

Thank you to our partners

The Alberta Health Economics Study Group Annual Seminar is supported financially and in-kind by our partners, including Alberta Health, through the Health Funding and Economics Capacity (HFEC) Grant. Please note that the views expressed in this series and other deliverables associated with NOAHE are not necessarily representative of any particular organization involved. For more information about the HFEC Grant, please email info@ihe.ca.