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.
P
- Potential Life YearsTermPYLL, Life-Years Foregone
- A measure of premature mortality calculated as the years of life lost when death occurs before a specified reference age, such as seventy.
- Potentially Inappropriate MedicationTermPIM, Inappropriate Prescribing Flag
- A medication generally considered to pose an unfavourable risk-benefit balance for a specific population, most commonly older adults, per expert criteria.
- Potentially Preventable EventTermPPE, Avoidable Adverse Event
- An adverse outcome, such as a readmission, that could plausibly have been avoided through appropriate care, unlike a disease's natural progression.
- PovertyTermEconomic Deprivation, Material Hardship
- A state of lacking the material resources needed to meet basic needs, measured against an income or consumption threshold and strongly associated with worse health.
- Poverty LineTermPoverty Threshold, Income Cut-Off
- In health economics, the income or consumption threshold below which a person or household is classified as living in poverty, used in equity and targeting analysis.
- Power of AttorneyTermHealth Decision Proxy, Welfare Attorney
- A legal document granting one individual authority to act on another's behalf, in healthcare typically to make medical decisions if incapacitated.
- Practice ChangeTermCare Delivery Change, Clinical Behaviour Shift
- A modification to established clinical or organisational routines, typically undertaken to align practice with current evidence-based recommendations.
- Practice Expense RVUTermPE RVU, Overhead Relative Value Unit
- A US Medicare relative value component reflecting the overhead costs of operating a practice, such as staff and office space, attributable to a service.
- Practice GuidelinesTermClinical Guidance Document, Care Standards Document
- Formal, evidence-based recommendations developed by an expert panel to guide clinical decision-making for a specific condition, promoting consistent care.
- Practice SettingsTermCare Settings, Clinical Settings
- The range of distinct physical and organisational environments in which a healthcare profession's members deliver services, such as community or hospital settings.
- Practice Style VariationTermPhysician Practice Style, Provider Style Difference
- Differences in clinical decision-making and treatment intensity across physicians or regions treating clinically similar patients, unexplained by need or preference.
- Pragmatic TrialTermReal-World Trial, Effectiveness Trial
- A trial designed to evaluate a treatment under conditions resembling routine clinical practice, using broad eligibility and outcomes relevant to real-world decisions.
- Pragmatic Trial DesignTermPRECIS-Guided Design, Pragmatic Study Protocol
- A trial design evaluating a treatment under conditions resembling routine practice, using broad eligibility and standard care settings, unlike an explanatory design.
- Pre-Commitment InterventionTermUlysses Contract, Self-Binding Device, Commitment Intervention, Commitment Device, Self-Binding Mechanism
- A mechanism allowing a person to voluntarily restrict future choices in advance to support a desired long-term behaviour.
- Pre-Existing ConditionTermPrior Condition, Existing Illness
- A health condition an individual had before applying for a new insurance policy, historically used by some insurers to deny or limit coverage.
- Pre-IND MeetingTermPre-IND Consultation, Pre-Investigational Meeting
- A formal meeting between a developer and regulators before submitting an Investigational New Drug application, seeking feedback on the proposed development plan.
- Pre-Specified AnalysisTermPre-Planned Analysis, A-Priori Analysis
- A statistical analysis formally planned and documented, typically within a study protocol, before the study's data were collected or examined.
- Pre-Test ProbabilityConceptPrior Diagnostic Probability, Baseline Risk of Condition
- The estimated probability that a patient has a condition before a diagnostic test result is known, based on prevalence and clinical presentation.
- PrecisionTermReproducibility of Measurement, Measurement Consistency
- A measure of how closely repeated statistical estimates cluster together, with a more precise estimate having a narrower confidence interval.
- Precision AssessmentTermPrecision Appraisal, Imprecision Rating
- An evaluation of an effect estimate's statistical precision, typically judged by the width of its confidence interval, wider meaning greater uncertainty.
- Precision MedicineConceptIndividualised Medicine, Precision Health
- An approach to prevention, diagnosis or treatment that uses relevant individual or disease characteristics to select a more appropriate care strategy.
- Precision TherapyTermMolecularly Targeted Treatment, Biomarker-Directed Therapy
- A treatment targeting a specific molecular or genetic feature of a patient's disease, closely related to personalised therapy but emphasising the biological targeting mechanism.
- Preclinical DevelopmentTermNonclinical Development, Pre-Human Development
- The drug development stage before human trials begin, covering laboratory and animal studies characterising a compound's biological activity, pharmacokinetics, and safety.
- Preclinical TestingTermNonclinical Testing, In-Vitro and Animal Testing
- Laboratory and animal studies characterising a drug candidate's biological activity, pharmacokinetics, and toxicity before it is first given to humans.
- Predicted CostTermForecast Cost, Modelled Cost
- An estimate of expected future healthcare expenditure generated using a risk adjustment model incorporating demographics, diagnoses, and prior utilisation.
- Prediction ErrorTermForecast Error, Predictive Inaccuracy
- The difference between a value predicted by a statistical model and the value that is actually observed.
- Prediction IntervalTermForecast Interval, Predictive Range
- A range calculated to contain a future individual observation with a specified confidence, unlike a confidence interval describing a population parameter.
- Prediction MethodsTermPredictive Techniques, Forecasting Methods
- Statistical and machine learning techniques used to forecast future outcomes or classify individuals based on a set of observed characteristics.
- Predictive AccuracyTermModel Accuracy, Predictive Performance
- The degree to which a model's forecasts or classifications correspond to actual observed outcomes when tested against real data.
- Predictive AnalyticsTermPredictive Modelling Analytics, Forecast Analytics, Clinical Forecast Analytics
- The use of statistical and machine learning techniques to analyse current and historical data to forecast future outcomes.
- Predictive BiomarkerTermTreatment-Response Biomarker, Response-Predicting Marker
- A biological indicator identifying which patients are likely to respond favourably or unfavourably to a specific treatment, unlike a prognostic biomarker.
- Predictive ValidityTermPredictive Criterion Validity, Forecast Validity
- The extent to which a model's forecasts about future events are later confirmed by observed real-world data.
- Predictive Validity AssessmentTermPredictive Validation Check, Criterion-Validity Testing
- The formal process of comparing a model's earlier forecasts against outcomes subsequently observed once real-world data became available.
- Preference ElicitationConceptPreference Measurement, Elicitation of Preferences
- Preference elicitation measures what people value in health care from stated or revealed choices, yielding QALY weights, money values or risk trade-offs.
- Preference WeightTermPreference Coefficient, Valuation Weight
- A numerical value reflecting the relative desirability a population or individual assigns to a particular health state or outcome.
- Preference-Based MeasureTermPreference-Weighted Measure, Preference-Elicited Instrument
- A health status instrument whose scoring derives from a formal preference elicitation exercise, so its scores can be used directly as utility values for QALYs.
- Preferred DrugTermFirst-Line Formulary Choice, Favoured Formulary Agent
- A medication assigned to a lower-cost formulary tier, typically with lower patient cost-sharing, to encourage its use over costlier alternatives.
- Preferred Provider OrganizationTermPPO, Preferred-Network Plan
- A managed care plan offering a discounted contracted network while still allowing out-of-network care at higher cost-sharing, without requiring referrals.
- Preferred TierTermLow-Copay Tier, Favoured Cost Tier
- A formulary or network category with more favourable, typically lower, cost-sharing in a tiered design, encouraging use of preferred options.
- Pregnant Women ResearchTermMaternal Research Inclusion, Research in Pregnancy
- Research involving pregnant women, subject to additional ethical considerations given the potential for risks or benefits to affect both mother and fetus.
- Premarket ApprovalConceptPMA, Premarket Approval Application
- Premarket approval (PMA) is the FDA review a high-risk Class III medical device must pass before US sale, on evidence of its safety and effectiveness.
- Prenatal ScreeningTermAntenatal Screening, Foetal Screening
- Testing conducted during pregnancy to assess the risk of genetic conditions or birth defects, informing further diagnostic testing or pregnancy management.
- PrepaymentTermAdvance Payment, Prepaid Financing
- A financing mechanism in which individuals contribute funds toward future healthcare costs before they are incurred, through taxation or premiums.
- Prescription Drug MonitoringTermPDMP, Controlled-Substance Database
- A state-level electronic database tracking the prescribing and dispensing of controlled substances, helping identify and prevent misuse and diversion.
- Prescriptive AnalyticsTermOptimisation Analytics, Action-Recommending Analytics
- An advanced analysis form going beyond predicting outcomes to recommend specific actions intended to achieve a desired result.
- Present BiasTermPresent Bias Concept, Current-Moment Bias
- The tendency to place disproportionate weight on immediate rewards or costs relative to future ones, beyond what constant discounting predicts.