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.
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- 15D
- A generic, multi-attribute quality of life instrument measuring fifteen health dimensions, each scored on five levels, combined into a single utility index.
A
- Aging-Driven Cost Growth
- The portion of rising healthcare expenditure attributed to a population's increasing average age and the associated shift toward more complex conditions.
- AQoL
- A multi-attribute utility instrument, the Assessment of Quality of Life, converting responses across several dimensions into a single score anchored between death and full health.
- Attribute
- A characteristic of a good or service that is varied systematically across profiles in a choice experiment, such as price or waiting time.
- Attribute Definition
- The specification of the characteristics assigned to each entity within a discrete event simulation, such as a patient's age or diagnosis.
- Attributed Patient
- A patient formally assigned to a specific provider for measuring cost and quality performance under a value-based payment arrangement.
C
- Choice Experiment
- A stated preference method in which respondents repeatedly pick their preferred option from sets of hypothetical alternatives that vary across defined attributes.
- Conjoint Analysis
- A method for measuring how individuals value different attributes of a good or service by analysing their evaluations of combined alternatives.
D
- D-Efficient Design
- An experimental design for a discrete choice experiment built to minimise the statistical variance of estimated attribute parameters for a fixed number of tasks.
- Direct Cost
- A cost that can be directly attributed to producing a specific good or delivering a specific service, such as medication given to a patient.
- Discrete Choice ExperimentDCE
- A quantitative technique for eliciting preferences in which respondents choose among hypothetical alternatives defined by varying attributes and levels.
F
- Fixed Effect Model
- A meta-analysis model assuming all included studies estimate the same true effect, with observed variation attributed entirely to sampling error.
H
- HUIHealth Utilities Index
- An abbreviation for the Health Utilities Index, a family of generic, multi-attribute health status classification systems producing a single utility value.
J
- Joint Cost
- A cost incurred jointly in producing two or more services or outputs, so it cannot be attributed uniquely to any single one.
L
- Level
- A specific value an attribute can take within a discrete choice experiment, such as a waiting time of two weeks versus six.
M
- Matching Method
- A health state valuation technique in which respondents adjust one attribute of an outcome until two alternatives seem equally preferable.
- Multi-Attribute Utility
- A utility value derived by combining preference weights across several distinct attributes of an outcome into a single overall measure.
O
- Orthogonal Design
- An experimental design for a choice experiment in which attribute levels are varied independently, so each attribute's effect on preference can be separated statistically.
- Overhead Cost
- A cost that supports an organisation's overall operations but cannot be directly attributed to a specific service or department, such as administration.
P
- Part-Worth Utility
- The contribution of a single attribute level to an individual's overall utility for a good, estimated from a conjoint or choice experiment.
- Patient Preference
- An individual patient's relative valuation of different treatment attributes or health outcomes, often elicited through methods such as a discrete choice experiment.
S
- Single Attribute Utility
- A utility value derived from a single dimension of health or outcome, unlike multi-attribute utility, which integrates several dimensions.
T
- Traceable Cost
- A cost that can be directly attributed to a particular department, product, or service line without relying on an allocation method.