General description
This course aims at providing the students with a basic understanding regarding the application of economics to health care.
Learning outcomes
To provide the students with an understanding concerning the application of economics to health care.
Contents
1) an introduction to/review of the discipline of economics 2) explanation of some of the special features of health care sector and 3) understanding the organization and comparison of different health care systems. The first topic introduces of some basic economic principles, e.g.: choice, supply, demand, markets, economic models, economic efficiency and opportunity cost. This is followed, in the second topic, by explanations of some of the special features of the health care sector, e.g.: market failure, incentives, justice, equity and agency. The final topic shows how health care is organized in different countries and ways in which comparisons can be made between different systems.
Further information on prerequisites and recommendations
Primarily for students of the Master's Degree Programme in Health Sciences (Public Health & International Health) and students enrolled on the International Postgraduate Programme in Epidemiology. Students have to register for the course on the internet at http://www.uta.fi/nettiopsu/. Deadline for the registration is two weeks before the course starts.
Teaching methods
| Teaching method | Contact | Online |
| Lectures | 2 h | 0 h |
| Group work | ||
| Independent work |
Moodle e-learning environment
Teaching language
EnglishModes of study
Active involvement in discussions and course tasks
Evaluation and evaluation criteria
Numeric 1-5.The course is graded on a scale of 1-5 or failed.
Recommended year of study
1. year autumnAutumn 2011, Period II
Study materials
Required reading (relevant sections from):
Morris S, Devlin N, and Parkin D. Economic analysis in health care. Wiley. 2007.
Recommended Reading:
McPake B and Normand C. Health Economics. Routledge. 2008.
Jan S et al. Economic Analysis for Management and Policy. Open University Press. 2005.
Further information
Web page https://learning.uta.fi/(for enrolled students)
