Dictionary

M

Mode Of AdministrationTermSurvey Delivery Format, Questionnaire Delivery Mode

The specific format used to deliver a health status questionnaire, such as self-completion on paper, telephone interview, or electronic survey.

Model Acceptance TestingTermStakeholder Sign-Off, Final Model Review

A model validation stage in which a completed model is formally reviewed and approved by relevant stakeholders before its results are used.

Model ArchivingTermModel Archival, Version Storage

The practice of preserving a complete, documented copy of a model, including its code and data, in a stable, retrievable format.

Model AssumptionTermModelling Assumption, Structural Premise

A simplifying premise built into a model's structure or parameter values, adopted because the true underlying reality is unknown or too complex.

Model AuditTermModel Quality Check, Model Inspection, Technical Review, Technical Appraisal Review, Methods Review

An independent, systematic review of a model's structure, code, and data by a party uninvolved in its original construction, to catch errors.

Model AveragingConceptBMA, Ensemble Averaging

A statistical technique combining predictions from several plausible candidate models, weighted by their relative statistical support, rather than relying on one selected model.

Model CodeTermModel Programming, Implementation Code

The complete set of programming instructions or spreadsheet formulas that implement a health economic model's calculations.

Model ConceptualizationTermConceptual Modelling, Problem Conceptualisation

The initial stage of model development in which the disease process and decision problem are structured into a framework before technical build.

Model DiagnosticsConceptDiagnostic Checks, Fit Diagnostics

A set of statistical and technical checks assessing a model's performance, such as poor calibration or unstable results under minor input changes.

Model DocumentationTermModel Write-Up, Model Dossier, Technical Report, Technical Dossier, Engineering Report

Written material describing a model's structure, assumptions, data sources, and validation results in enough detail for independent review.

Model For ImprovementTermMFI, Improvement Model

A quality improvement framework combining aim, measures, and change questions with the iterative plan-do-study-act cycle for testing changes.

Model HorizonTermModelling Horizon, Projection Period

The total length of time over which a decision-analytic model simulates costs and outcomes, from short-term to full lifetime.

Model InterfaceTermModel Front-End, User Input Layer

The point of interaction between a health economic model and its users, covering adjustable inputs and displayed outputs.

Model MaintenanceTermModel Upkeep, Ongoing Model Support

The ongoing process of updating a model's inputs, structure, or code over time as new evidence or a changed context requires.

Model OutputTermModel Results, Analysis Output

The results produced by a health economic model, such as total expected cost, QALYs, and the resulting incremental cost-effectiveness ratio.

Model ParsimonyTermParsimonious Modelling, Model Economy

The principle that a model should be no more complex than necessary to address its intended decision question adequately.

Model PlatformTermModelling Platform, Model Environment

The specific software environment, such as a spreadsheet or a specialised programming language, in which a health economic model is built and run.

Model ReplicationTermModel Reproduction, Independent Rebuild, Reproducibility Assessment, Reproducibility Check, Repeatability Evaluation

The process of independently reconstructing a model, based on its published description, to verify it produces the same results as originally reported.

Model ReviewTermModel Appraisal, Independent Scrutiny

A systematic examination of a model's structure, assumptions, and results by people other than its original developers, to catch errors or concerns.

Model ScopeTermModelling Scope, Analytic Coverage, Model Boundary

The range of interventions, populations, outcomes, and time horizon a decision-analytic model is designed to address.

Model SelectionConceptModel Choice, Specification Search

The process of choosing a model from plausible alternatives using criteria suited to the intended question, data, predictive or explanatory performance, and decision context.

Model SimplificationTermModel Reduction, Simplifying Assumption Set

The deliberate exclusion of real-world detail from a model's structure to keep it tractable, transparent, and focused on the decision question.

Model StructureTermModel Architecture, Structural Form

The overall organisation of a health economic model, including its technique, the health states or events represented, and how they link together.

Model TransparencyTermTransparent Reporting, Model Openness

The degree to which a model's structure, assumptions, and calculations are made accessible and understandable to external reviewers.

Model UpdateTermModel Refresh, Data Refresh

A revision to a model's inputs or structure to reflect new evidence or a changed context, distinct from correcting an outright error.

Model ValidationConceptValidity Checking, Model Credibility Check

Model validation is the structured assessment of whether a model is sufficiently accurate, credible, and fit for its stated decision purpose.

Model-Based EvaluationTermModel-Based Analysis, Decision-Model Evaluation

An economic evaluation built using a mathematical or simulation model that synthesises evidence from multiple sources rather than a single study.

Moderate-Quality EvidenceTermModerate-Certainty Evidence, GRADE Moderate

Within GRADE, a rating indicating moderate confidence the true effect is close to the estimate but could differ substantially, from trials with some limitations.

Moderation AnalysisTermModerator Analysis, Effect-Modification Analysis

A statistical approach examining whether an exposure-outcome relationship's strength or direction differs depending on the level of a third, moderating variable.

Modified ITTTermmITT, Modified Intention-to-Treat

A variation of intention-to-treat analysis excluding a small, prespecified subset of participants, such as those never dosed, while keeping others by original assignment.

Modified Rankin ScaleConceptModified Rankin Score, mRS Score

Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) is a clinician-rated 0 to 6 grade of disability after stroke, used as a trial outcome and to define stroke model health states.

Molecular EpidemiologyTermMolecular Epi, Molecular Disease Tracking

A branch of epidemiology incorporating molecular and genetic biomarkers into the study of disease distribution and causation, allowing precise characterisation of disease subtypes.

Molecular ResponseTermMR, Molecular-Level Response

A response measure using highly sensitive laboratory techniques detecting very small quantities of disease-associated genetic material, more precise than hematologic or cytogenetic criteria.

Monetary ValuationConceptMonetisation, Money-Metric Valuation

Monetary valuation expresses a health outcome or other non-market good in money terms, using stated preference, revealed preference or wellbeing methods.

Money-Back GuaranteeTermRefund Guarantee, Money-Back Scheme

An outcomes-based agreement in which a manufacturer refunds some or all of a treatment's cost if the patient does not achieve a predefined outcome.

Monitoring CostTermSurveillance Cost, Drug Monitoring Expense

The expense of tracking a patient's treatment response and screening for adverse effects, covering laboratory tests, imaging, and clinical visits.

Monoclonal AntibodyTermmAb, Therapeutic Antibody

A laboratory-produced molecule engineered to bind to a single, specific target antigen, forming the basis of a major class of biological therapies.

MonopolyTermSingle-Seller Market, Sole Supplier

A market structure in which a single seller controls the entire supply of a good, allowing prices above what competition would produce.

Monopoly PricingTermMonopolist Pricing, Single-Seller Pricing

The pricing behaviour of a firm with monopoly power, setting price above marginal cost to maximise profit and reduce quantity supplied.

MonopsonyTermSingle-Buyer Market, Buyer Monopoly

A market structure in which a single buyer accounts for all or most purchases of a good, giving it power to push the price down.

MonotherapyTermSingle-Agent Therapy, Sole Therapy

A treatment approach using a single therapeutic agent alone, unlike combination therapy involving two or more agents used together.

Monotonic HazardTermMonotone Hazard, Increasing-or-Decreasing Hazard

A hazard function that either consistently rises or consistently falls over the entire modelled period, without reversing direction.

Monte Carlo ErrorConceptMCSE, Simulation Sampling Error

Monte Carlo error is the random numerical difference between a finite-simulation estimate and the target quantity it would approach with sufficiently many valid draws under the specified model.

Monte Carlo IntegrationConceptMC Integration

A numerical technique estimating a complex integral's value by sampling random points repeatedly and averaging them, useful when no closed-form solution exists.

Monte Carlo SimulationConceptMCS, Second-Order Simulation

Monte Carlo simulation uses repeated random sampling to show how uncertainty in model inputs produces uncertainty in model outputs.

Moral HazardConceptHidden Action, Post-Contract Opportunism

Moral hazard is the change in behaviour, such as greater use of healthcare, that occurs when insurance shields people from the full cost of their choices.

Moral Hazard in Health InsuranceConcept

Moral hazard in health insurance is extra healthcare use when cover lowers the price patients pay, and any reduced effort to stay healthy once insured.

MorbidityTermSickness Rate, Disease Occurrence

The state of being affected by a disease, covering associated symptoms, functional impairment, and reduced quality of life, unlike mortality.

Morris MethodConceptElementary Effects Method, Morris Screening

A global sensitivity-screening method that samples one-input-at-a-time elementary effects across multiple model-input settings to identify influential or varying inputs.

MortalityTermFatality, Death Occurrence

The occurrence of death within a defined population, commonly measured using rates expressing deaths relative to population size over time.