Health technology assessment
Encyclopedia
Health Technology Assessment is a multi-disciplinary field of policy analysis
Policy analysis
Policy analysis is "determining which of various alternative policies will most achieve a given set of goals in light of the relations between the policies and the goals". However, policy analysis can be divided into two major fields. Analysis of policy is analytical and descriptive—i.e., it...

 that examines the medical, economic, social and ethical implications of the incremental value, diffusion and use of a medical technology
Medical technology
Medical Technology encompasses a wide range of healthcare products and is used to diagnose, monitor or treat diseases or medical conditions affecting humans. Such technologies are intended to improve the quality of healthcare delivered through earlier diagnosis, less invasive treatment options and...

 in health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...

.

It is intended to provide a bridge between the world of research and the world of decision-making. Health technology assessment is an active field internationally and has seen continued growth fostered by the need to support management, clinical, and policy decisions. It has also been advanced by the evolution of evaluative methods in the social and applied sciences, including clinical epidemiology and health economics. Health policy decisions are becoming increasingly important as the opportunity costs from making wrong decisions continue to grow.

The growth of HTA internationally can be seen in the expanding membership of the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment (INAHTA), a non-profit umbrella organization established in 1993. Organizations and individuals involved in HTA research are also affiliated with societies such as the international societies HTAI and the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). An international masters program in health technology assessment and management, ULYSSES, is also offered.

In the UK, the Multidisciplinary Assessment of Technology Centre for Healthcare carries out HTA in collaboration with the health service, the NHS and various industrial partners. MATCH is organised into four themes addressing key HTA topics including Health Economics, Tools for Industry, User Needs and Procurement and Supply chain.

Health technology can be defined broadly as:

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