Entry requirements

General entry requirements

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

After completing the course, students should be able to:

• Describe the meaning of and opportunities for prevention
• Describe economic models for investments in prevention
• Explain different theories of socially efficient resource allocation and a health economic approach
• Summarize basic principles in health economic evaluations of prevention.

Skills and abilities

After completing the course, students should be able to:

• Use economic models to reason about investments in prevention
• Apply economic tools and methods for evaluating preventive interventions
• Estimate health effects and costs related to prevention
• Critically analyse scientific studies in health economics
• Develop decision-making frameworks to assess the cost-effectiveness of various public health interventions

Judgement and approach

After completing the course, students should be able to:

• Compare marginal benefits and marginal costs for decisions on preventive interventions
• Compare, evaluate and assess the cost-effectiveness of preventive interventions
• Advocate for the value of health economics in the implementation of public health interventions

Content

The course covers health-related prevention, economic drivers of investment in prevention, and methods measuring and evaluating the effects of preventive interventions in both health and monetary terms. It starts with an introduction to prevention and health economics, followed by discussions on economic models of prevention, health behavior, and their impact on the socio-economic gradient in health. The course then moves on to health economic evaluations, focusing on measuring costs, health effects, and cost-effectiveness of preventive interventions, and applying these analyses for decision-making in resource prioritization.

The course consists of four parts:

• Overview of different types of prevention and an introduction to health economics.
• Economic modelling of prevention, health behaviour and their impact on the socio-economic gradient in health;
• Health economic evaluations - measuring costs, health effects, and cost-effectiveness of preventive interventions
• Application of health economic analyses for decision-making in resource allocation.

Instruction

Instruction is provided through lectures, and mandatory method and literature seminars. The course includes both individual and group work, with written and oral presentations

Assessment

The course is examined by written assignments, seminars and a take-home exam. To pass the course, students must:

• Pass the written assignments
• Approved participation in mandatory seminars
• Pass the take-home exam

If there are special reasons, the examiner may allow exceptions to the specified examination method and permit a student to be examined in a different way. Special reasons may include, for example, a notice of special pedagogical support from the university coordinator.