Enhancing Healthcare Decision-Making: Comparison Between Health Technology Assessments and Access to Medical Care in a High-income Country vs. Low/middle Income Countries
Abstract
Background: Healthcare decision-making is a complex process that involves evaluating the value, efficacy, and accessibility of medical technologies and interventions. Health Technology Assessments (HTA) in high-income countries (HICs) have become a cornerstone of evidence-based healthcare decision-making. This systematic evaluation framework, exemplified by its robust, impartial examination of various medical technologies, plays a pivotal role in establishing the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of health technologies.
In contrast, low and middle-income countries (LMICs) frequently contend with resource constraints and intricate healthcare systems characterized by fragmentation and limited access to advanced medical technologies. As formalized HTA processes may be less established, limiting comprehensive evaluations, decision-making may rely on regulatory approval, clinical guidelines, or international recommendations in LMICs.
Similarly, access to medical care in high-income settings, such as the presence of universal healthcare coverage and well-developed health systems, contributes to equitable access to a wide range of medical services. In LMICs, challenges related to healthcare infrastructure, funding, and health workforce shortages hinder access to essential medical care, leading to inequities in health outcomes. This short review aims to compare the approaches to healthcare decision-making in high-income and low/middle-income countries, with a specific focus on HTAs and access to medical care.
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15. Mori AT, Kaale EA, Ngalesoni F, Norheim OF, Robberstad B. The role of evidence in the decision-making process of selecting essential medicines in developing countries: the case of Tanzania. PLoS One. 2014;9(1):e84824. [PubMed ID:24416293].[PubMed Central ID:PMC3885598]. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0084824.
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17. Zegeye EA, Reshad A, Bekele EA, Aurgessa B, Gella Z. The State of Health Technology Assessment in the Ethiopian Health Sector: Learning from Recent Policy Initiatives. Value Health Reg Issues. 2018;16:61-5. [PubMed ID:30195092]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vhri.2018.07.001.
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22. The private sector, universal health coverage and primary health care. 2023. Available from: https://www.who.int/docs/defaultsource/primary-health-care-conference/private-sector.pdf.
23. Grepin KA. Private Sector An Important But Not Dominant Provider Of Key Health Services In Low- And Middle-Income Countries. Health Aff (Millwood). 2016;35(7):1214-21. [PubMed ID:27385236]. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2015.0862.
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35. World Health Organization. Countries are spending more on health, but people are still paying too much out of their
own pockets. 2023. Available from: https://www.who.int/news/ item/20-02-2019-countries-are-spending-more-on health-butpeople-are-still-paying-too-much-out-of-their-own-pockets.
36. Chalkidou K, Towse A, Silverman R, Garau M, Ramakrishnan G. Market-driven, value-based, advance commitment (MVAC): accelerating the development of a pathbreaking universal drug regimen to end TB. BMJ Glob Health. 2020;5(4). [PubMed ID:32332035]. [PubMed Central ID:PMC7204919]. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2019-002061.
37. World Economic Outlook Database. 2023. Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo database/2023/April.
38. World Economic Outlook Database. Report for Selected Countries and Subjects: World, European Union. IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 2023 Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2023/April.
39. World Bank Country and lending groups. 2023 Available from: https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/
articles/906519-world-bank-country-and-lending-groups.
40. Current health expenditure (% of GDP). 2023 Available from: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS.
41. GDP (current US$). 2023. Available from: https://data.worldbank. org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD.
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 8 No 2 (2024) | |
| Section | Review Article | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/htaa.v8i2.15632 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Developing Countries Health Expenditures Universal Health Insurance Technology Assessment | ||
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How to Cite
1.
Pankaj S, Karun A, Bhate J, Rao KS G. Enhancing Healthcare Decision-Making: Comparison Between Health Technology Assessments and Access to Medical Care in a High-income Country vs. Low/middle Income Countries. Health Tech Ass Act. 2024;8(2).
