Health Economics Seminar
Code
9283
Academic unit
Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública
Department
Saúde Pública e Organizações de Saúde
Credits
12.0
Teacher in charge
João António Catita Garcia Pereira
Total hours
56
Teaching language
Português
Objectives
At the end of the curricular unit students should be able to:
1.Identify and describe concepts and methods of economics when applied to health.
2.Interpret and apply empirical studies in the area of demand, supply, financing and health equity.
3.Develop, interpret and apply interdisciplinary studies of economic evaluation of health programmes in the field of health policy and administration.
4.Critically investigate new topics of research in health economics and contribute to the resolution of problems by articulating evidence-based arguments.
5. Identify key aspects of the health information system, in particular the data bases commonly used in the field of health economics, both in Portugal and internationally.
6. Identify and analyze health economics in its different areas of application, focusing on themes and methods recently developed in the literature.
7.Use econometric methods and other advanced techniques when applied to health.
Subject matter
The program consists of two components:
- Participation in Applied Health Economics curricular unit (4 ECTS), taught entirely in English. Topics are chosen from among the following:
- The financing of the health care sector: health expenditures and health outcomes, macroeconomic analysis;
- The demand for health: moral hazard, physician agency and supplier-induced demand;
- Payment of health care providers: incentives and behavior of individual providers and institutions;
- Health outcomes measurement: Quality of life, QALYs and willingness to pay;
- Applied health econometrics: interpreting results from empirical studies;
- Inequality in health and equity in health care financing and delivery: methods and international comparisons;
- The second component corresponds to the preparation of the thesis proposal by the student, containing a justification and theoretical basis, a literature review and description of the methodology and data sources to be used (8 ECTS).
Teaching method
-In the taught component: presentations by lecturers and discussion of topics; practical sessions with problem solving and data analysis on computers; presentation and discussion of results by students.
-In the preparation of the thesis proposal component: individual work with teacher guidance; analysis of theses topics in seminars; individual contacts between teachers and students and through distance learning; presentation of results by students; involvement of all health economics faculty.
Evaluation method
The assessment results from three components:
- presentation and discussion of individual monograph on the subject chosen for PhD research - 2/3 of the final grade;
- literature review within the teaching component - 1/6 of final grade;
- continuous assessment within the teaching component, through observation of student participation and the presentation and discussion of topics and exercises - 1/6 of final grade.