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Semester 1

Health Systems Analysis (SCPL10034)

Subject

Social Policy

College

CAHSS

Credits

20

Normal Year Taken

3

Delivery Session Year

2023/2024

Pre-requisites

Visiting students must have completed at least 3 Social Policy or closely related courses at grade B or above. We will only consider University/College level courses. Please contact the course organiser for permission to enrol on the course, and then forward this to the Visiting Student Office (cahssvisitingstudents@ed.ac.uk) for consideration.

Course Summary

This course aims to provide students with the ability to evaluate health systems in any country or region. A core goal is to provide students with an understanding of economic principles and how these can be applied by health policy-makers in policy design, and by other analysts of health system performance. The course currently exists at SCQF Level 11 and has, since its introduction in 2013-14, been taken at that level by BMedSci Honours students doing an intercalated year within the Global Health Policy Unit. This is a challenging course and students undertaking it should either be studying on a BMedSci or have completed at least two years of undergraduate study in the Social Sciences

Course Description

The course aims to provide a critical understanding of how different models of financing and delivering health products and services can lead to different outcomes in terms of important policy goals such as equity and efficiency. Students will develop an ability to compare and evaluate various models of health system governance, with a particular focus on the evaluation of market vs. planned approaches. They will learn about the organisation and delivery of health systems, with a focus on human/ pharmaceutical resources and use of information, and be required to identify and evaluate methods by which resources are allocated or channelled to individual and institutional providers of health services. In disciplinary terms, students will develop competencies in applying economic principles to look critically at factors- including micro- and macro-economic factors- that have an influence on health systems policies.

Assessment Information

Written Exam 0%, Coursework 100%, Practical Exam 0%

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