Dictionary

F

F-DistributionConceptF Distribution, Variance-Ratio Distribution

The F distribution describes the ratio of two independent variance estimates and underlies F tests on cost and outcome regressions in health economics.

Face ValidityTermSurface Validity, Expert-Judgement Validity

A basic, largely subjective judgement of whether a model's structure and assumptions seem reasonable to experts familiar with the disease being modelled.

Face Validity AssessmentTermFace Validity Check, Structural Plausibility Review

The process of having clinical or methodological experts review a model's overall structure and key assumptions before more rigorous quantitative testing begins.

Facilitator of ImplementationTermImplementation Facilitator, Enabler of Adoption

A factor or individual actively supporting successful adoption of a new evidence-based practice, complementing efforts to address barriers.

Facility Management HealthTermHealthcare Facilities Management, Estates Management

The processes involved in maintaining and optimising a healthcare organisation's physical infrastructure, covering building maintenance and safety compliance.

FACT-GConceptFunctional Assessment of Cancer Therapy General, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General

FACT-G is a 27-item cancer quality of life questionnaire used as a trial outcome, whose scores need mapping or the FACT-8D before they can inform QALYs.

Factor AnalysisConceptCommon-Factor Modelling, Latent-Structure Analysis

Factor analysis explains correlations among observed variables using a smaller number of unobserved latent factors.

Factor FixingTermParameter Fixing, Negligible-Factor Screening

A global sensitivity analysis technique identifying which input parameters have negligible influence on a model's output, so they could be fixed at a constant.

Factor LoadingConceptLoading Coefficient, Factor Weight

A factor loading is a model-estimated coefficient that relates an observed variable to a latent factor under a specified factor-analytic measurement model.

Factor MappingTermOutput-Region Mapping, Monte Carlo Filtering

A global sensitivity analysis technique identifying which combinations of input values produce outputs within a specific range of interest, such as below a threshold.

Factor PrioritisationTermVariance-Based Ranking, Parameter Importance Ranking

A global sensitivity analysis technique ranking input parameters by how much of a model's output variance each is responsible for.

Factor RotationConceptOrthogonal Factor Rotation, Oblique Factor Rotation, Varimax Rotation, Promax Rotation, Factor Rotations

Factor rotation transforms an extracted factor solution to make its loading pattern easier to interpret while preserving the model-implied common covariance under an equivalent transformation.

Factorial DesignConceptFactorial Trial, Multi-Factor Design

Factorial design is a trial design randomising people to combinations of two or more treatments, so one trial estimates each effect and any interaction.

Failure Mode Effects AnalysisTermFMEA, Failure Mode and Effects Analysis, Failure Mode Analysis

A structured method proactively identifying and evaluating potential failure modes, along with their likely severity and detectability, to prioritise preventive action.

Failure to RescueConceptFTR

Failure to rescue (FTR) is a hospital quality measure giving the share of patients who die after developing a complication, most often following surgery.

Fair InningsTermFair Lifespan Principle, Fair-Share Lifespan

An ethical argument holding that people who die young have been deprived of a fair share of a normal lifespan, deserving greater priority.

Falls RateConceptPatient Fall Rate, Inpatient Falls Indicator

Falls rate is inpatient falls per 1,000 occupied bed days (patient days), a hospital patient safety indicator also reported for injurious falls.

False Claims ActTermFCA, False Claims Law

A US federal law imposing liability on those who knowingly submit false claims for payment to the government, including federal healthcare programmes.

Family ImpactTermFamily Burden, Family Effect Measure

A measure capturing a patient's illness or treatment effect on family members, covering emotional burden, disrupted routines, and financial strain.

Family Planning CoverageTermContraceptive Coverage, Reproductive Service Coverage

A measure of the proportion of individuals with access to needed contraceptive and reproductive health services, a tracer indicator for universal health coverage.

Fast Track DesignationTermFast Track Status, Expedited Review Designation

A regulatory designation facilitating and expediting review of drugs treating serious conditions with unmet need, offering more frequent regulatory interaction.

FatigueTermTiredness, Lack of Energy

A clinical outcome measure capturing a patient's subjective tiredness or lack of energy, commonly assessed using standardised, validated fatigue-specific instruments.

FDATermUS Food and Drug Administration, Food and Drug Administration

The US Food and Drug Administration, the federal agency responsible for regulating the safety and efficacy of drugs, biologics, and devices.

Feasibility AssessmentConceptFeasibility Study, Practicality Assessment

An evaluation of whether a proposed study or intervention can practically be conducted given available resources, infrastructure, and population characteristics.

Feasibility CriterionTermPracticality Criterion, Implementability Standard

A standard assessing whether a proposed study, intervention, or policy can practically be implemented given available resources and constraints.

Federal SystemTermFederal Health System, Federated Governance Model, Federation Model, Federal Governance Arrangement, Multi-Level Health Governance

A health system structure where authority is constitutionally divided between national and subnational governments, each retaining meaningful independent authority.

Federally Qualified Health CenterTermFQHC, Federal Health Center

A community-based provider receiving US federal funding to deliver comprehensive primary care to medically underserved populations regardless of ability to pay.

Fee FreezeTermFee Rate Freeze, Payment Freeze

A regulatory or contractual action preventing fee schedule rates from increasing for a specified period, a cost-containment mechanism.

Fee ReductionTermFee Cut, Payment Rate Reduction

A decrease in the payment rate for a specific service under a fee schedule, whether from regulatory action or negotiated agreement.

Fee ScheduleTermPayment Schedule, Reimbursement Schedule, Price Schedule, Pricing Schedule, Tariff Table

A comprehensive list specifying the predetermined payment amount a payer will reimburse for each specific service, organised by standardised procedure codes.

Fee-for-ServiceConceptFFS, Per-Service Payment

Fee-for-service (FFS) is a provider payment method in which a purchaser pays separately for each item of care, such as a consultation, test or procedure.

Fee-For-Service IncentiveTermVolume Incentive, FFS Volume Incentive

The financial incentive within fee-for-service payment where revenue rises with service volume, independent of necessity or value of care given.

Feedback InterventionTermPerformance Feedback, Feedback Technique

An intervention that gives individuals information about their own behaviour or outcomes to influence future behaviour.

Feedback LoopTermCausal Feedback, Feedback Mechanism

A causal pathway in which a change in one variable eventually leads, through other variables, back to a change in itself.

FHIRTermFast Healthcare Interoperability Resources, Health Data Exchange Standard

A technical standard for exchanging healthcare information electronically, designed to let different systems share data more easily using web-based technology.

Field EpidemiologyTermApplied Epidemiology, Outbreak Epidemiology

The application of epidemiological methods to investigate and respond to acute public health problems, such as outbreaks, in real time.

Fieller MethodConceptFieller's Theorem, Ratio Confidence Interval Method

The Fieller method calculates a confidence interval for a ratio such as the ICER, allowing for joint uncertainty in the cost and effect differences.

Final OutcomeTermTrue Endpoint, Definitive Outcome

A clinical outcome measure directly reflecting a patient's health status or survival, such as death, unlike a surrogate or intermediate outcome.

Final RecommendationTermFinal Guidance, Binding Recommendation

The concluding, binding decision issued by an assessment body following its full appraisal process, determining a technology's funding status.

Financial BarrierConceptCost Barrier, Affordability Barrier

A financial barrier is a cost that stops or delays people using health or social care, such as charges, travel or lost pay, when they cannot afford it.

Financial EfficiencyTermFiscal Efficiency, Cost Efficiency of Finance

A measure of how effectively an organisation converts financial resources into patient care activity and outcomes, avoiding unnecessary spending.

Financial FeasibilityTermFiscal Feasibility, Funding Feasibility

An assessment of whether a proposed policy can be adequately funded given available resources, considering both implementation and long-term fiscal cost.

Financial Hardship MeasureTermFinancial Burden Measure, Hardship Indicator

A quantitative indicator assessing the degree of financial burden a household faces from healthcare costs, such as catastrophic expenditure.

Financial ManagementTermHealthcare Financial Management, Accounting

In health economics, the planning, recording, control and reporting of a healthcare organisation's financial resources, providing the accounts and metrics used to assess financial performance and sustainability.

Financial ProtectionTermFinancial Risk Protection, Cost Burden Shielding

The degree to which a financing system shields individuals from healthcare cost burden, covering both service breadth and protection depth.

Financial Protection IndexTermProtection Index, Financial Risk Protection Index

A composite measure combining multiple financial hardship indicators into a single statistic tracking a health system's protection performance over time.

Financial RatioTermAccounting Ratio, Financial Metric

A quantitative measure derived from an organisation's financial statements, used to assess liquidity, solvency, or profitability.

Financial StatementTermAccounts, Financial Report

A formal record summarising an organisation's financial activities and position, typically comprising the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement.

Financing IncidenceTermFinancing Burden Distribution, Incidence of Financing

An analysis of how a health system's financing burden, whether taxation or out-of-pocket payments, is distributed across population subgroups.

Finite Difference MethodConceptFDM, Difference Quotient Method

The finite difference method replaces derivatives with algebraic differences between function values at neighbouring grid points.