Hedibel Meriem, Ghanassi Fatma-Zohra, El-Fass Kareem A, Fasseeh Ahmad N, Abaza Sherif, Kaló Zoltán
Pharmaceutics and Industrial Pharmacy Research Laboratory, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Algiers, Algiers, DZA.
Health Economics, Syreon Middle East, Alexandria, EGY.
Cureus. 2024 Jul 28;16(7):e65558. doi: 10.7759/cureus.65558. eCollection 2024 Jul.
Background The scarcity of resources restricts healthcare financing decisions, affecting the population's health. Health technology assessment (HTA) balances restricted budgets with the best possible health outcomes. We aim to characterize the current status of HTA in Algeria and describe the future directions for HTA implementation according to the priorities set by local stakeholders. Methods Stakeholders from the public and private sectors responded to a policy survey about the current and preferred future status of HTA implementation in Algeria. The survey was administered during an online workshop and used a widely accepted international scorecard covering eight domains: capacity building, HTA financing, process and organizational structure, scope of HTA implementation, decision criteria, standardization of methodology, use of local data, and international collaboration. After that, one-on-one interviews with another local expert were conducted to validate and modify the draft recommendations. The interviewees were representatives from government agencies, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies. Results Thirty-one experts filled out the HTA scorecard survey; most of them were from the public sector (74%). They highlighted that project-based HTA workshops or short courses were the most common form of HTA education in Algeria and recommended the establishment of postgraduate HTA training programs in the future to build sustainable capacities. They reported a lack of funding for HTA research and critical appraisal and recommended an increased public budget for HTA and the introduction of submission fees by manufacturers. There was consensus about the need for local HTA evidence generation in the future. Most of the experts advocated an explicit soft decision threshold. The interviewees further recommended using multi-criteria decision analysis in the short term. The application of quality indicators was believed to improve the reliability of the HTA process. Conclusion The results of our policy research delineate the gap between the current and preferred future status of HTA in Algeria based on insights from multiple stakeholders. The need to improve the educational HTA programs in Algeria, use local data in policy decisions, and increase funding for HTA were the most advocated recommendations.
背景 资源稀缺限制了医疗保健融资决策，影响了民众的健康。卫生技术评估（HTA）在有限的预算与尽可能好的健康结果之间取得平衡。我们旨在描述阿尔及利亚HTA的现状，并根据当地利益相关者设定的优先事项描述HTA实施的未来方向。方法 公共和私营部门的利益相关者对一项关于阿尔及利亚HTA实施的当前和未来理想状况的政策调查做出了回应。该调查在一次在线研讨会上进行，使用了一个被广泛接受的国际记分卡，涵盖八个领域：能力建设、HTA融资、流程和组织结构、HTA实施范围、决策标准、方法标准化、本地数据的使用以及国际合作。之后，与另一位当地专家进行了一对一访谈，以验证和修改建议草案。受访者是政府机构、医院和制药公司的代表。结果 31位专家填写了HTA记分卡调查；其中大多数来自公共部门（74%）。他们强调基于项目的HTA研讨会或短期课程是阿尔及利亚HTA教育最常见的形式，并建议未来设立研究生HTA培训项目以建立可持续的能力。他们报告称HTA研究和批判性评估缺乏资金，并建议增加HTA的公共预算以及制造商引入提交费用。对于未来需要生成本地HTA证据存在共识。大多数专家主张明确的软决策阈值。受访者还建议在短期内使用多标准决策分析。人们认为应用质量指标可以提高HTA过程的可靠性。结论 我们的政策研究结果根据来自多个利益相关者的见解，勾勒出了阿尔及利亚HTA当前和未来理想状况之间的差距。最受倡导的建议是需要改进阿尔及利亚的HTA教育项目、在政策决策中使用本地数据以及增加HTA的资金。
