Dictionary
The Dictionary provides concise definitions of health economics terms, arranged alphabetically for quick reference. Use it to understand unfamiliar terminology or confirm the meaning of a specific term.
H
- Health Maintenance OrganizationTermHMO, Gatekeeper Health Plan
- A managed care organisation delivering comprehensive care through a defined provider network, typically requiring a primary care provider to coordinate access.
- Health OutcomeTermHealth Result, Health Status Change
- Any change in health status resulting from a healthcare intervention or a condition's natural course, from survival to patient-reported quality of life.
- Health PlanningTermHealth Service Planning, Health System Planning
- The process of assessing a population's healthcare needs and planning health system infrastructure, workforce, and services development to meet them.
- Health PolicyConceptHealth-Sector Policy, Government Health Decisions
- Government or organisational decisions, plans, and actions intended to achieve specific health-related objectives, covering financing, regulation, and programming.
- Health Price IndexTermMedical Price Index, Healthcare Price Index
- A measure tracking changes over time in the prices of healthcare goods and services specifically, unlike the general consumer price index.
- Health Production FunctionConceptProduction of Health, Health Output Function
- A health production function shows how medical care, other market goods and own time produce health, with education raising efficiency (Grossman model).
- Health ProfileTermMulti-Dimensional Health Measure, Dimensional Health Score
- A set of scores across multiple distinct health dimensions reported separately for a person or population, rather than combined into one index.
- Health PromotionTermHealth Improvement, Wellness Promotion
- The process of enabling people to increase control over, and improve, their own health, addressing the broader social and environmental conditions that shape it.
- Health Promotion EconomicsTermHealth Promotion Cost-Effectiveness, Wellness Economics
- The application of health economic evaluation to interventions improving population health through education, policy, and community programmes rather than direct treatment.
- Health Reimbursement ArrangementTermHRA, Employer Health Account
- A US employer-funded account reimbursing employees for qualified medical expenses tax-free, with unused funds typically staying with the employer.
- Health Savings AccountTermHSA, Tax-Advantaged Health Account
- A tax-advantaged savings account for individuals with a qualifying high-deductible plan, with funds carrying over indefinitely and remaining employee-owned.
- Health Services ResearchTermHSR, Health Systems Research
- In health economics, the multidisciplinary study of how people access health care, what it costs, and its outcomes, to inform policy and practice.
- Health SpendingTermHealthcare Spending, Total Health Outlay, Healthcare Expenditure
- The total resources devoted to healthcare goods and services within a defined population and period, from all funding sources.
- Health Spending as GDP ShareConceptHealth Spending Share of GDP, Health Expenditure as Percent GDP
- Health spending as GDP share is current health expenditure divided by gross domestic product, used to compare health spending across countries and years.
- Health StateTermDescribed State Profile, EQ-5D State
- A health state is a defined level of health, such as an EQ-5D profile or a state in a Markov model, to which a utility value and costs are attached.
- Health State DefinitionTermMarkov State Specification, State Clinical Definition
- The precise clinical specification of each distinct health state within a Markov model, describing the criteria a patient must meet to occupy it.
- Health State Utility ValueConceptHSUV, Health State Utility
- A health state utility value, or HSU value, is a preference-based numerical weight assigned to a health state for use in economic evaluation.
- Health State ValuationConceptState Valuation, Utility Elicitation
- Health state valuation is the elicitation and modelling of preferences for defined states of health to assign scores on a scale anchored by dead and full health for use in economic evaluation and related decisions.
- Health StatusTermHealth State Overall, Overall Health Condition
- An individual's overall condition of physical, mental, and social wellbeing at a given point in time, commonly assessed using standardised instruments.
- Health SystemTermHealthcare System, Health Care System
- The organisations, people, and actions whose primary intent is to promote, restore, or maintain health, across formal and informal channels.
- Health System Building BlocksConceptWHO Building Blocks, System Building Blocks
- The WHO framework that organizes health-system functions into six interacting domains: leadership and governance, financing, workforce, medical products and technologies, information systems, and service delivery.
- Health System EfficiencyTermSystem Efficiency, Health System Productivity
- The degree to which a health system achieves maximum possible health outcomes from available resources, or a given outcome using minimum resources.
- Health System FairnessTermHealth System Equity, Fair Financing
- The degree to which a health system distributes financing burden and access equitably across the population, regardless of income or health status.
- Health System FinancingConceptHealth Financing, Healthcare Financing
- Health system financing is how a country raises money for health, pools it to share risk and buys services, shaping access and financial protection.
- Health System FunctionsTermSystem Functions, Core System Activities
- The core activities a health system performs to achieve its goals, commonly categorised as financing, resource generation, service provision, and stewardship.
- Health System GoalsTermSystem Goals, Health System Objectives
- The fundamental objectives a health system aims to achieve, including improving population health, fairness in financial contribution, and responsiveness to expectations.
- Health System OrganizationConceptHealth System Structure, System Organisation
- The arrangement of authority, financing and purchasing institutions, care providers, and patient pathways within a health system, including how those actors coordinate and are held accountable.
- Health System PerformanceTermSystem Performance, Health System Assessment
- An overall assessment of how well a health system achieves its goals, evaluated across population health outcomes, financial fairness, and responsiveness.
- Health System ResponsivenessTermSystem Responsiveness, Patient Responsiveness
- The degree to which a health system meets the legitimate non-health expectations of its population, such as dignity, autonomy, and prompt attention.
- Health System StrengtheningTermHSS, Strengthening Health Systems
- Efforts aimed at improving overall health system functioning, typically addressing core building blocks such as financing, workforce, or governance.
- Health TechnologyTermMedical Technology, Health Intervention Technology
- A broad term covering any intervention used to promote health, prevent or treat disease, or improve rehabilitation and long-term care.
- Health Technology Adoption CurveConceptS-Curve, Diffusion Curve
- A health technology adoption curve shows how use of a new medicine or device grows over time, usually S-shaped: slow, then rapid, then levelling off.
- Health Technology Adoption MonitoringTermUptake Monitoring, Diffusion Tracking
- The ongoing tracking of how quickly and broadly a newly recommended technology is actually taken up into clinical practice.
- Health Technology AssessmentConceptHTA, Technology Evaluation
- Health technology assessment (HTA) evaluates the clinical, economic, social and ethical effects of a drug, test, device or procedure to guide its use.
- Health Worker DensityTermWorkforce Density, Health Personnel Density
- A measure of the number of healthcare workers, such as physicians or nurses, available relative to the population they serve.
- Health WorkforceTermHealth Human Resources, Healthcare Workforce
- The collective body of individuals engaged in actions whose primary intent is to enhance health, covering physicians, nurses, and other professionals.
- Health Workforce BlockTermWorkforce Building Block, Human Resources for Health
- A core health system building block encompassing the availability, distribution, and skill mix of healthcare workers needed to deliver services.
- Health-Adjusted Life YearConceptHALY, Health-Adjusted Life-Year Measure
- A general term for outcome measures, including the QALY and DALY, combining length of life with a weighting for quality or disability into one unit.
- Health-Related Quality of LifeConceptHRQoL, HRQL
- A multidimensional concept covering the physical, psychological, and social aspects of wellbeing affected by a person's health status or its treatment.
- Healthcare AccreditationConceptFacility Certification, Independent Certification
- Healthcare accreditation is external review of health services against published standards by an accrediting body, with public recognition if they comply.
- Healthcare Accreditation StandardsTermAccreditation Criteria
- The specific criteria a healthcare organisation must meet to achieve and maintain accreditation, covering patient safety, quality, and governance.
- Healthcare BudgetTermHealth Budget, Healthcare Funding Allocation
- The total financial resources allocated to healthcare spending within a defined period, at national, regional, or organisational level.
- Healthcare Cost GrowthTermHealth Cost Inflation, Healthcare Spending Growth
- The rate at which total healthcare expenditure rises over time, commonly broken down into population growth, ageing, price inflation, and treatment intensity.
- Healthcare FacilityTermHealth Facility, Care Facility
- A physical site where health services are delivered, such as a hospital, clinic, imaging centre or nursing facility.
- Healthcare Infection EconomicsTermNosocomial Infection Economics, HAI Economics
- The application of health economic evaluation to infections acquired in healthcare settings, covering both prevention programmes and treatment once they occur.
- Healthcare PayerTermPayer, Financing Entity
- An entity, whether private insurer, government programme, or self-insured employer, responsible for financing healthcare on behalf of a covered population.
- Healthcare PerspectiveTermHealth System Perspective, Third-Party Payer Perspective
- An analytic viewpoint including only costs and outcomes falling on the healthcare payer or provider, excluding broader costs such as productivity loss.
- Healthcare PolicyTermHealth Care Policy, Delivery System Policy
- A subset of health policy focused specifically on organising, financing, and regulating the healthcare delivery system, distinct from broader public health policy.
- Healthcare Production FunctionConceptMedical Production Function, Care Output Function
- A healthcare production function gives the maximum care output, such as visits or hospital episodes, obtainable from given staff, capital and technology.
- Healthcare ProxyTermHealth Proxy, Medical Power of Attorney
- An individual legally designated by a patient to make healthcare decisions on their behalf if they become unable to communicate.