Capacity for health economics research and practice in Jordan, Lebanon, the occupied Palestinian territories and Turkey: needs assessment and options for development
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Gheorghe, Adrian
Ismail, Sharif
Gad, Mohamed
Chalkidou, Kalipso
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background: Capacity for health economics analysis and research is indispensable for evidence-informed allocations of scarce health resources, however little is known about the experience and capacity strengthening preferences of academics and practitioners in the Eastern Mediterranean region. This study aimed to assess the needs for strengthening health economics capacity in Jordan, Lebanon, the occupied Palestinian territories and Turkey as part of the Research for Health in Conflict in Middle East and North Africa (R4HC-MENA) project.
Methods: Bibliometric analysis of health economics outputs combined with an online survey of academic researchers and non-academic practitioners. The bibliometric analysis was based on a literature search conducted across seven databases. Included records were original studies and reviews with an explicit economic outcome related to health, disease or disability; had at least one author in Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine or Turkey; and were published between January 2014 and December 2018. Two types of analyses were conducted using VOSviewer software: keyword co-occurrence; and co-publication networks across countries and organizations. The online survey asked academic researchers, analysts and decision-makers – identified through the bibliometric analysis and regional professional networks – about previous exposure to and preference for capacity development in health economics.
Results: Of 15,185 records returned by the literature search, 566 were included in the bibliometric analysis. Organizations in Turkey contributed more than 80% of records and had the broadest and most diverse network of collaborators, nationally and internationally. Only 1% (n=7) studies were collaborations between researchers in two or more different jurisdictions. Cost analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis and health system economics were the main health economics topics across the included studies. Economic evaluation, measuring the economic burden of disease and health equity were reported by survey respondents (n=80) as the most important areas to develop in. Short courses, learn-by-doing and mentoring from an experienced professional were, in aggregate, the most preferred capacity development modalities.
Conclusions: Existing pockets of health economic expertise in the region can constitute the base of future capacity development efforts. Building confidence toward applying specific methods and trust toward stimulating cross-jurisdiction collaborations appear essential components for sustainably developing health economics capacity.
Methods: Bibliometric analysis of health economics outputs combined with an online survey of academic researchers and non-academic practitioners. The bibliometric analysis was based on a literature search conducted across seven databases. Included records were original studies and reviews with an explicit economic outcome related to health, disease or disability; had at least one author in Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine or Turkey; and were published between January 2014 and December 2018. Two types of analyses were conducted using VOSviewer software: keyword co-occurrence; and co-publication networks across countries and organizations. The online survey asked academic researchers, analysts and decision-makers – identified through the bibliometric analysis and regional professional networks – about previous exposure to and preference for capacity development in health economics.
Results: Of 15,185 records returned by the literature search, 566 were included in the bibliometric analysis. Organizations in Turkey contributed more than 80% of records and had the broadest and most diverse network of collaborators, nationally and internationally. Only 1% (n=7) studies were collaborations between researchers in two or more different jurisdictions. Cost analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis and health system economics were the main health economics topics across the included studies. Economic evaluation, measuring the economic burden of disease and health equity were reported by survey respondents (n=80) as the most important areas to develop in. Short courses, learn-by-doing and mentoring from an experienced professional were, in aggregate, the most preferred capacity development modalities.
Conclusions: Existing pockets of health economic expertise in the region can constitute the base of future capacity development efforts. Building confidence toward applying specific methods and trust toward stimulating cross-jurisdiction collaborations appear essential components for sustainably developing health economics capacity.
Date Issued
2020-09-03
Date Acceptance
2020-06-07
Citation
Health Research Policy and Systems, 2020, 18
ISSN
1478-4505
Publisher
BioMed Central
Journal / Book Title
Health Research Policy and Systems
Volume
18
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2020. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.
License URL
Sponsor
Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC)
National Institute for Health Research
Wellcome Trust
Grant Number
PO# 60079104
ACF-2015-21-024
215654/Z/19/Z
Subjects
Eastern Mediterranean
Middle East and North Africa
bibliometric analysis
capacity strengthening
health economics
online survey
1117 Public Health and Health Services
1605 Policy and Administration
Health Policy & Services
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN 99