Health economics is a research area at the intersection of economics and medicine. The focus is on studies of the connections between healthcare, wellness and finances, for example, the costs and effects of medical interventions in daily clinical practice. There is a great need in society for independent research and education. With an ageing population and medical advances enabling individualised care, healthcare is facing major funding challenges.
An initiative to increase contact areas
Erik Grönqvist, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Economics, and Bertil Lindahl, Professor at the Department of Medical Sciences, are both active in the interdisciplinary environment in health economics that exists today at Uppsala University, and they hosted the inauguration earlier this summer.
“This initiative means that we can increase the contact areas both within the University and with other partners and stakeholders. In this Centre for Health Economic Research, for example, the industry organisation for researching pharmaceutical companies, Lif, is an active financier. I am pleased that we have the opportunity to highlight our collaboration in this way,” says Erik Grönqvist.
Representatives from universities and industry
The inaugural programme included representatives from the faculties of medicine and social sciences, as well as guests from Lif and the Swedish Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency. The Keynote speaker was David Slusky, Executive Director, American Society of Health Economists (ASHEcon) from the University of Kansas.
“Here in Uppsala there is a well-established collaboration within the University and with Region Uppsala, Uppsala University Hospital, and several other national and international stakeholders. We will be able to increase our common knowledge of issues concerning efficiency and equal resource utilisation in Swedish healthcare. It ultimately benefits the patient,” says Bertil Lindahl.