Entry requirements

For applicants within:

- The programme for Master of Science in Pharmacy, at least 150 credits within the programme is required and have gone through all courses in semester 1-7 within the programme.

- The programme for Master of Science in Pharmaceutical Modelling, admission to the programme and attendance of the course Drug Discovery and Development 7.5 credits is required.

- The programme for Master of Science in Drug Discovery and Development, admission to the programme and attendance of the course Drug Discovery and Development 7.5 credits is required.

- Acceptance to a single subject course requires at least 150 credits of witch at least 60 credits are in Pharmacy and/or pharmaceutical science including education in Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics.

Other education is tried individually. Knowledge in English equivalent to that required for basic eligibility to Swedish higher education.

Learning outcomes

After having completed the course, the students should be able to:

- explain the principles of economic evaluations

- be able to develop and analyse an economic evaluation of a drug treatment, including deciding on and defending methodological choices

- summarize and explain selected published economic evalutations

- reflect on, critically analyse and compare the value and quality of selected published economic evaluations

- relate a self-developed economic evaluation to health care policy, by proposing and motivating its potential policy relevance and implications.

Content

The course deals with economic evaluation of drug interventions, including decision-analytical modelling and methods to predict long-term outcomes. The course covers:

- Principles of health economic evaluations

- Basic epidemiological concepts

- Main types of economic evaluations

- Resource use and cost analysis

- Measuring of health status and outcomes

- Modelling approaches

- Sensitivity analysis and assessment of uncertainly

- Utilization of economic evaluations

In addition, the course includes reflection, critical assessment and comparisons of the quality and value of selected published economic evaluations. A case work will consist of developing and analysing an economic evaluation, where the students need to make choices of methodological aspects and defend the choices made. An important part of the case work is also to reflect, propose/determine and motivate its relation and relevance for decision-making in health care as well as drug industry.

Instruction

The course consists of lectures, workshops and case-works.

Compulsory parts of the course: Presence at course introduction, workshops and case-work presentations.

Assessment

The examination will take place continuously during the course in the form of workshops and case-works. Passing the course requires presence during compulsory sections of the course, and pass of written and oral presentations of case-works and workshops.

Possibility to redo or complement compulsory sections can earliest be provided the next time the course is given in case of vacancies. Students have right to six examinations, i.e. one examination and five re-examinations.