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Chapter 13 - Decision-Making Tools for Informed Decisions by Health Policymakers and Managers

from Section 1 - Analyzing Health Systems: Concepts, Components, Performance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 December 2022

By
Meesha Iqbal ,
Hiba Sameen ,
Mohammad Abu-Zaineh ,
Awad Mataria  and
Sameen Siddiqi
Edited by
Sameen Siddiqi ,
Awad Mataria ,
Katherine D. Rouleau  and
Meesha Iqbal
Sameen Siddiqi
Affiliation:
Aga Khan University
Awad Mataria
Affiliation:
World Health Organization, Egypt
Katherine D. Rouleau
Affiliation:
University of Toronto
Meesha Iqbal
Affiliation:
UTHealth School of Public Health, Houston
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Summary

The process of decision making is not linear and is affected by multiple factors, other than availability of evidence, such as political context, personal over public interests, decision makers’ accountability, relationships with stakeholders, and familiar experiences in the past. Evidence-informed decisions positively influence access, quality, efficiency, equity, and sustainability of health services, and improve transparency and accountability thereby reducing wastage, abuse, and corruption in the health system. This chapter presents six decision making tools that help policy makers and managers take evidence-informed decisions: burden of disease analysis; health technology assessment; cost-effectiveness analysis; health equity analysis; national health accounts analysis; and stakeholder analysis. The list of tools is not exhaustive, and additional tools can be explored to respond to the context and nature of the public health concern. Policymakers are not expected to know all their methodological aspects, rather they should know what tools are available, their purpose and application, strengths and limitations, and how to interpret the results in the local context.

Keywords

Decision Making ToolsEvidence Based DecisionsBurden of DiseaseHealth Technology AssessmentDALYsQALYCost-effectiveness AnalysisIncremental Cost-effectiveness RatioHealth InequalityHealth EquityNational Health AccountsStakeholder AnalysisPolicy AnalysisLorenz CurveGini CoefficientConcentration CurveL&MIC
Type
Chapter
Information
Making Health Systems Work in Low and Middle Income Countries
Textbook for Public Health Practitioners
 , pp. 186 - 207
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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