This course will deliver the fundamentals of health economics and the practical elements of economic evaluation that are integral to health technology assessment.

Asynchronous material delivered over ten weeks.

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Assessment 1 - Critical Appraisal [1,200w; 25%; ILOs 1,2 and 4]

Assessment 2 - Written Exercise [2,000w; 65%; ILOs 2,3,5 and 6]

Assessment 3 - Forum Engagement (set exercise) [10%; ILOs 1-6]

This course aims to provide students with a critical understanding of health economics, its value and limitations. It will familiarise students with the application of economic theory to health and health care issues, the principles of health economics and the techniques of economic appraisal.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Critically assess and apply the key concepts of economics to a variety of health sector issues

■ Critically interpret and evaluate the distinctive economic characteristics of health care and how they affect the demand for, and supply of, health care

■ Critically evaluate the range of health economic evaluation techniques and apply them to appropriate circumstances

■ Critically appraise economic studies of health care interventions

■ Critically analyse inputs and outputs from economic evaluation (costs, outcomes, incremental cost-effectiveness ratios) and test the sensitivity of results

■ Critically evaluate the contribution of health economics to health care decision making

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.