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.
T
- Transient StateNon-Absorbing State, Recurrent State
- A health state within a Markov model that a patient can leave and potentially return to, unlike an absorbing state such as death.
- Transition DefinitionTransition Rule, State-Change Criterion
- The precise specification of the clinical event or criteria triggering a patient's movement from one health state to another in a Markov model.
- Transition RewardTransition Payoff, One-Off Transition Value
- A cost or outcome value applied at the moment a patient moves between two health states, unlike a state reward accrued over time.
- Transition StructureAllowed-Move Pattern, State-Flow Structure
- The overall pattern of permitted movements between health states within a Markov model, reflecting which transitions are clinically plausible.
U
- Utility StructureUtility Framework, Utility Configuration
- The way a decision-analytic model assigns health state utility values, including adjustments for factors such as age or treatment-related adverse events.
- Utility WeightQALY Weight, Health-State Weight
- A numerical value representing the relative desirability of a specific health state, used to weight time in that state for QALYs.
V
- Valuation ProtocolValuation Procedure, Elicitation Protocol
- The specific procedures, including instructions, health state descriptions, and elicitation technique, followed when conducting a health state valuation study.
- Valuation Study DesignValuation Design, Preference Study Design
- The overall methodological plan for a health state valuation exercise, including sample selection, elicitation technique, and the health states to be valued.
- Visual Analogue ScaleVAS, Visual Analog Scale
- A health state valuation method in which respondents mark a perceived health state on a continuous line anchored between worst and best imaginable health.