|
|
Research Institute for Health Outcomes
Mission
Escalating health care costs will be one of the most significant economic challenges of this century. No less a source than The New York Times has described the issue as "the worst long-term fiscal crisis facing the nation." One of the keys to helping manage the rising cost of health care will be answering questions such as:
- What are the costs of specific new medical interventions and how do they affect patients and others who pay for health care, including insurance companies, managed care organizations and the government?
- Does health care spending bring the most value for the dollar?
- Which medical interventions are best for the patient and what are the end results of that care?
The Research Institute for Health Outcomes (RIHO) at Albany College of Pharmacy is beginning to address some of these crucial questions through inter-disciplinary groups of faculty, with methodological and clinical expertise, who research and disseminate findings from health outcomes, health-technology assessments, and pharmacoeconomics research.
The Institute brings together faculty, students and other collaborators to perform scientifically-sound, high-quality research in health outcomes and economics. The Institute specializes in pharmaceutical products, pharmacy services, and diagnostic tools, using various resources (located within the college or within collaborating institutions) to support its research mission.
RIHO will achieve its mission in three primary areas-conducting and publicizing research, providing education and training activities and fostering consulting collaborations between faculty researchers and external organizations or associations. Student support is also a core value of the RIHO and will be a part of all of the institute's activities.
Vision
The Institute will be recognized nationally as a leader in health outcomes research, health technology assessment and pharmacoeconomics research.
Activities
Activities that support RIHO's mission include:
Research
• Assembling multi-disciplinary teams of faculty to conduct intramural and extramural research, optimizing health outcomes with costs of pharmaceutical products, pharmacy services or diagnostics.
• Publicizing findings in a variety of national and international outlets to advance knowledge, inform decision-makers and improve patient care.
• Partnering with organizations to conduct specific health outcomes and pharmacoeconomics research. Organizations may include health care providers, insurers, manufacturers, foundations as well as government agencies and professional associations.
Teaching
• Educating students, the public, peers and decision-makers through continuing education presentations, professional presentations and graduate level courses.
Service Goals
• Supporting and encouraging student involvement in health outcome and pharmacoeconomic research, at the professional, graduate and post-graduate (residency and fellowship) levels, through external gifts, grants and contracts.
Expertise
Current RIHO faculty have demonstrated expertise in the following areas:
• Creating and analyzing economic decision models and simulation of the effects of medical interventions, diagnostic tests or health policy decisions.
• Analyzing large secondary health care claims databases.
• Collecting and analyzing therapeutic outcomes from medical chart reviews.
• Conducting evaluations of health service use patterns.
• Evaluating clinically oriented pharmacy services and targeted disease management programs.
• Conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of published studies to summarize therapeutic effectiveness of new and existing medical technologies.
• Evaluating adherence to clinical treatment guidelines.
• Utilizing a variety of data sources to estimate service costs.
Affiliations
RIHO faculty are currently affiliated with the following organizations or sources of data:
• Albany Medical Center
• NYS Medicaid (Drug Utilization Review program)
• Thomson Healthcare Marketscan Database
• Upstate New York Consortium for Health Care Research and Quality (UNYCHRQ) / Upstate New York Translational Research Network (UNYTRN)
• Stratton V.A. Medical Center
Faculty
Leon Cosler, Ph.D., Director - Represents and promotes the Institute outside ACP's college community; identifies potential areas of research, education or contractual projects. The director assists in the establishment of collaborative relationships and ensures timely progress of institute activities.
Patrick Meek. Pharm.D., Assistant Director - Responsible for the identification, assembly and coordination of the external advisory committee. This committee will consist of regional and national experts in the field of health outcomes research, who will advise RIHO to identify national needs and potential sources of funding for institute activities.