HTA is multi-disciplinary field of policy analysis that examines the medical, economic, social and ethical implications of the incremental value, diffusion and use of a health technology in health care.
The term Health Technology refers to application of organised knowledge and skills in the form of devices, medicines, vaccines, procedures and systems developed to solve a health problem and improve quality of life.
A comprehensive evaluation of the BreastScreen Australia Program has been conducted, under the direction of the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council (AHMAC) and managed by the Department of Health and Ageing. To inform this evaluation, the Department of Health and Ageing requested that the Health Policy Advisory Committee on Technology (Health PACT) undertake a Horizon Scan […]
This article presents an overview of the practical methods and tools to support transnational Health Technology Assessment (HTA) that were developed and pilot tested by the European network for HTA (EUnetHTA), which involved a total of sixty-four Partner organizations. The methods differ according to scope and purpose of each of the tools developed. They included, for […]
The EUnetHTA project aims at facilitating HTA information sharing within Europe. In order to achieve this, the development of a standardised structure for the conduction and reporting of HTAs, a HTA Core Model, was considered essential. Work Package (WP) 4 of the EUnetHTA Project developed two applications of the HTA Core Model – one for medical […]
This report is an HTA on drug eluting stents. It is an application of the HTA Core Model for medical and surgical interventions and hence called a «Core HTA». The aim is to test the model and provide feedback that will be adjusted based on the experiment. Besides the more theoretical work, the Core HTA functions as […]
Screening mammography, a technique which is 50 years old, aims to advance the diagnosis of breast cancer in order to offer early treatment, thereby improving the chances of cure. The practice of mammography, in constant evolution, varies widely according to the equipment used, the interpretation of films, and program aspects such as the age of women when they are […]
Health systems have developed at different speeds, and with differing degrees of complexity throughout the twentieth century, reflecting the diverse political and social conditions in each country. Notwithstanding their diversity, all systems, however, share a common reason for their existence, namely the improvement of health for their entire popula- tions. To attain this goal a health […]
The objective of the assessment was to estimate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of dualchamber pacemakers versus single-chamber atrial or single-chamber ventricular pacemakers in the treatment of bradycardia due to sick sinus syndrome (SSS) or atrioventricular block (AVB). A pacemaker consists of a small, battery-powered generator and one or more leads. In a singlechamber system, one lead is used, most commonly pacing the right ventricle. […]
Mid-wheel drive powered wheelchairs (MWDs) have been extremely popular in the American and Canadian markets for the past few years. The drive wheels of this type of chair are positioned in line with or near the centre of gravity of the chair, while the drive wheels of other powered chairs are located towards the front or the rear. This […]
In May 1997, the Conseil d’évaluation des technologies de la santé du Québec (CETS) published a report dealing spe- cifically with excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). Since then, the ophthalmological applications of the excimer laser have continued to evolve at a rapid pace. Furthermore, these applications, which are available essen- tially in the private sector, given […]
Heart failure is a complex syndrome that arises when the heart is incapable of pumping enough blood to respond to the metabolic needs of the body. Heart failure is often caused by defective contraction and relaxation of the myocardium, accompanied by elevated cardiac filling pressure. It represents the final stage of a number of cardiovascular diseases. […]