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.
I
- International Reference PricingTermCountry-Basket Pricing, External Price Referencing
- A pricing policy setting a country's drug price with explicit reference to prices charged for the same product in a defined basket of countries.
- Internet Of Medical ThingsTermIoMT, Medical IoT
- The network of interconnected medical devices and health technologies collecting and exchanging data over the internet, including wearables and remote monitors.
- InteroperabilityTermData Exchange Capability, Seamless Data Sharing
- The ability of different healthcare information systems to exchange, interpret, and use data seamlessly, without extensive manual intervention.
- Interoperability SavingsTermInteroperability Benefits, Data-Exchange Savings
- The cost savings and efficiency gains achieved when healthcare information systems can seamlessly exchange data, avoiding duplication and administrative burden.
- Interoperability StandardsTermData Exchange Standards, Health IT Standards, Digital Standards, Digital Health Standards, Health Data Standards
- The technical specifications and protocols enabling different healthcare information systems to exchange and interpret data consistently.
- InterpolationConceptIn-Between Estimation, Intermediate-Value Estimation
- Interpolation estimates a value between observed or modelled data points using an assumed relationship across the interval.
- Interpretability AssessmentTermScore Interpretability Review, Interpretability Evaluation
- An evaluation of whether an outcome measure's numerical scores can be meaningfully understood in terms of real-world clinical significance.
- Interpretation ErrorTermMisinterpretation, Result Misreading
- A mistake arising when correctly calculated results are misunderstood or miscommunicated, such as mistaking a relative risk for an absolute risk difference.
- Interquartile RangeConceptIQR, Midspread
- A dispersion measure calculated as the difference between the seventy-fifth and twenty-fifth percentiles, the range containing the middle half of observations.
- Interrupted Time SeriesConceptITS Design, Segmented Time Series
- A quasi-experimental design analysing observations before and after an intervention, testing for a significant change in level or trend at that point.
- Interruptive AlertTermHard-Stop Alert, Active Alert
- A clinical alert requiring a provider to actively respond before proceeding, unlike a passive alert displayed without requiring immediate response.
- Intersectoral ActionTermCross-Sectoral Action, Multisectoral Action
- Coordinated action across multiple government sectors, such as health and education, working toward a shared health objective outside sole health control.
- Interval CensoringConceptInterval-Censored Data, Between-Visit Censoring
- A form of censoring in which an event's exact time is unknown but known to fall within a specific interval, such as between visits.
- Interval EstimateTermInterval Estimation, Range Estimate
- A range of values, such as a confidence interval, calculated to convey the uncertainty surrounding a point estimate of a parameter.
- Interval ScalingConceptInterval Scale, Equal-Interval Measurement
- A measurement scale property in which numerical differences correspond to equal differences in the underlying quantity, allowing meaningful arithmetic operations.
- InterventionConcept
- An intervention is any test, treatment, programme, strategy or policy aimed at health or care; HTA compares its costs and effects with alternatives.
- Intervention Acceptability AssessmentTermAcceptability Evaluation, Acceptability Appraisal
- An evaluation of whether an intervention or research finding is likely to be viewed as reasonable and appropriate by relevant stakeholders.
- Intervention PerspectiveTermIntervention-Level Perspective, Intervention-Defined Viewpoint
- An analytic viewpoint defined by the specific intervention being studied, including all costs and outcomes directly attributable to it regardless of who bears them.
- Interventional CardiologyTermCardiac Intervention, Catheter-Based Cardiology
- A cardiology subspecialty using catheter-based treatment of structural heart and vascular conditions, including angioplasty, stenting, and structural valve intervention.
- Interventional TherapyTermProcedural Therapy, Interventional Treatment
- A treatment approach involving a procedure or physical intervention, such as surgery or a catheter-based procedure, unlike medication-based pharmacological therapy.
- Interviewer BiasConcept
- Interviewer bias is systematic error caused by how an interviewer asks questions or behaves, as in time trade-off or willingness-to-pay surveys.
- Intra-Rater ReliabilityTermIntra-Observer Agreement, Within-Rater Reliability
- The degree of agreement between repeated assessments made by the same rater evaluating the same phenomenon on separate occasions.
- Intraclass CorrelationConceptICC, Intra-Cluster Correlation
- A measure quantifying the proportion of total variance in an outcome attributable to differences between groups or clusters, relative to variance within them.
- Intramuscular AdministrationTermIM Injection, Intramuscular Route
- A route of drug administration involving injection directly into muscle tissue, used for certain vaccines and medications needing slower, sustained absorption.
- Intravenous AdministrationTermIV Administration, Intravenous Route
- A route of drug administration involving direct injection or infusion into a vein, giving immediate, complete entry into the bloodstream without absorption delay.
- Inventory Management HealthTermMedical Inventory Management, Stock Management
- The processes an organisation uses to track and optimise its supply of medical products, balancing availability against excess inventory costs.
- Investigational Device ExemptionConceptIDE
- An investigational device exemption (IDE) is a US FDA permit to test an unapproved medical device in a clinical study, often to support premarket approval.
- Investment HorizonTermInvestment Time Horizon, Payback Horizon
- The length of time over which an investment's costs and returns are expected to be realised and evaluated.
- IQWiGTermInstitute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care, German HTA Institute
- The Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care, Germany's body conducting evidence-based benefit assessments informing G-BA coverage decisions.
- IsolationTermContagion Separation, Infectious-Patient Separation
- An infection control practice separating individuals known to be infected with a contagious disease from others, preventing further transmission.
- ISPORTermInternational Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research, Outcomes Research Society
- The International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research, a global professional society providing methodological guidance for health economics.
- IterationTermMonte Carlo Draw, Simulation Pass
- A single completed pass through a simulation model's calculations, typically using one randomly sampled set of parameter values in probabilistic sensitivity analysis.