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Developing the Global Health Cost Consortium Unit Cost Study Repository for HIV and TB: methodology and lessons learned


Willyanne DeCormier Plosky
Lori A. Bollinger
Lily Alexander
Drew B. Cameron
Lauren N. Carroll
Lucy Cunnama
Gabriela B. Gomez
Carol Levin
Elliot Marseille
Mohamed Mustafa Diab
Mariana Siapka
Edina Sinanovic
Anna Vassall
James G. Kahn

Abstract

Consistently defined, accurate, and easily accessible cost data are a valuable resource to inform efficiency analyses, budget preparation, and sustainability planning in global health. The Global Health Cost Consortium (GHCC) designed the Unit Cost Study Repository (UCSR) to be a resource for standardised HIV and TB intervention cost data displayed by key characteristics such as intervention type, country, and target population. To develop the UCSR, the GHCC defined a typology of interventions for each disease; aligned interventions according to the standardised principles, methods, and cost and activity categories from the GHCC Reference Case for Estimating the Costs of Global Health Services and Interventions; completed a systematic literature review; conducted extensive data extraction; performed quality assurance; grappled with complex methodological issues such as the proper approach to the inflation and conversion of costs; developed and implemented a study quality rating system; and designed a web-based user interface that flexibly displays large amounts of data in a user-friendly way. Key lessons learned from the extraction process include the importance of assessing the multiple uses of extracted data; the critical role of standardising definitions (particularly units of measurement); using appropriate classifications of interventions and components of costs; the efficiency derived from programming data checks; and the necessity of extraction quality monitoring by senior analysts. For the web interface, lessons were: understanding the target audiences, including consulting them regarding critical characteristics; designing the display of data in “levels”; and incorporating alert and unique trait descriptions to further clarify differences in the data.

Keywords: tuberculosis, database, reference case, systematic review


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eISSN: 1608-5906
print ISSN: 1727-9445