Ateneo - UPO

The course aims to provide students with an updated economic framework for the analysis of the health care sector, as well as the tools to evaluate the impact of health policies on equity and efficiency. The topics covered will include: i) public and private health spending and health systems; ii) equity in access to care; iii) health outcomes, the socioeconomic determinants of health; health production; iv) the demand for health services; iv) the provision of health services, particularly through hospitals; v) the efficiency and appropriateness of health services.

The text will be recommended at the beginning of the course. A series of scientific articles will be available for further study during the lessons.

At the end of the course, students will: 1. Have acquired knowledge of the main economic models of reference in the field of health economics. 2. Have acquired the basic tools to critically analyze health data and statistics. 3. Will be able to rigorously evaluate the effectiveness and appropriateness of health programs and services. 4. Will have acquired adequate technical language. 5. Will be familiar with the structure of the main health systems. 6. Will have developed skills that will allow them to set priorities in the health sector.

For students of Economics, it is recommended (but not mandatory) to have taken a course in Microeconomics.

The course includes lectures, in-class exercises, group work, including using software programs, and presentations of case studies by students.

1) Ongoing learning monitoring. 2) Students with disabilities, Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD), or Special Educational Needs (SEN) can request specific services and tools by contacting the Career Development and Coordination and Student Services Staff and by consulting the dedicated page on the University website: https://uniupo.it/it/servizi/servizi-studentidisabili-e-dsa. Students with disabilities, SLD, or SSEN, after contacting the University Staff, can contact the professor in charge of the course regarding the specific exam modalities and teaching aspects.

Final written exam with open-ended and closed-ended questions. Interim partial assessments

English A) Health Spending and Health Systems • Public and Private Health Spending: Evolution Over Time and Differences Between Countries • Rationales for Public Intervention: Efficiency and Equity B) Health, Determinants of Health, Demand for Health Services • Measuring Health, Evolution of Life Expectancy, the Health Production Function • Grossman's Basic Model (1972) • Determinants of Health, Particularly Social Determinants (Education, Poverty, etc.) • Demand for Health Services C) Supply of Health Services • Markets for Health Services • Quasi-Markets and the Corporatization of the National Health Service D) Application – The Use of Data in Healthcare • Case Study: Obesity as a Social Illness – Basics of Using STATA Software • Propensity Score Matching as a Technique for Measuring inference E) Comparative Health Systems: • Beveridge, Bismark, and Market Models • Characteristics of the Italian National Health Service

At the end of the course, students will: 1. Have acquired knowledge of the main economic models of reference in the field of health economics. 2. Have acquired the basic tools to critically analyze health data and statistics. 3. Will be able to rigorously evaluate the effectiveness and appropriateness of health programs and services. 4. Will have acquired adequate technical language. 5. Will be familiar with the structure of the main health systems. 6. Will have developed skills that will allow them to set priorities in the health sector.