Introduction to priority setting in health

This course introduces participants to the core methods of priority setting in health. Emphasis is placed on evaluating efficiency and equity in health, assessing fairness in process and distribution of health outcomes, and applying standard methods and practical tools that balance equity concerns with health maximization.

The course is organised into ten modules:

1. Priority setting at national and global levels

2. Clinical health priorities

3. Ethical theory – substantive fairness

4. Ethical theory – procedural fairness

5. Climate change and health priorities

6. Demography and epidemiology

7. Health financing

8. Health economics

9. Equity analyses

10. FairChoices: DCP Analytical Tool

Format and Workload: This is an asynchronous digital course with instruction delivered over a ten week period. Each module spans over one week and requires approximately 7.5 hours of student work. Learning activities include a combination of video lectures, readings, exercises and group work, and discussions. Students are expected to engage actively online and participate in weekly “Priority Talks” with experts, followed by collaborative group work in all modules.

Upon completing this course the candidate will have the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

1. understands the ethical, clinical, economic, and policy foundations of health priority setting at national and global levels.
2. has knowledge of how clinical priorities at the individual and service level relate to population-level decisions and Essential Health Service Package (EHSP) design.
3. has insight into how global challenges such as climate change, demographic and epidemiological transitions, and health financing structures shape health priorities.

Skills

The student

1. can apply ethical theories, epidemiological and economic evidence, and equity analyses to evaluate and compare health interventions and policies.
2. can critically analyze clinical evidence and integrate it with population-level data to inform priority setting.
3. is able to use analytic tools (including FairChoices) and health financing concepts to support the design and revision of national essential health care packages and health technology assesments.
4. can write a critical analysis on a chosen topic within health priority settings

General competence

The student

1. can critically reflect on trade-offs between health maximization, fairness, sustainability, and responsiveness to clinical needs in priority setting.
2. is capable of integrating clinical, ethical, economic, and epidemiological perspectives across layers (from bedside to policy) to contribute to fair, transparent, and legitimate processes of health priority setting in practice.