ABOUT US
The Toronto Health Economics and Technology Assessment (THETA) Collaborative is a multidisciplinary research collaboration dedicated to providing evidence informed decision support to health technology policy makers and advancing the science of health technology assessment (HTA).
Government decision makers and health-care providers are often tasked with improving health-care quality while containing the growth of health-care costs. To meet these objectives, policy makers are seeking evidence about the clinical and economic effectiveness of health technologies. Yet health technology assessment (HTA) is an emerging field and there is often a lack of high quality scientific evidence to guide decisions. With 45 investigators, 39 collaborators, 28 graduate students and 26 staff, THETA is addressing the need for high quality research. The breadth of our expertise covers the core areas of HTA science: clinical evaluation, economic evaluation, and evaluation of ethical and social implications of health technologies.
Activities are focused in the following areas:
- Advancing the scientific discipline of HTA through high-quality research.
- Engaging in knowledge translation to disseminate knowledge of HTA among researchers, policy-makers and health service providers.
- Increasing HTA training and learning opportunities.
THETA works in partnership with the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation (IHPME), the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto (lead academic partner), Cancer Care Ontario and University Health and Network in Toronto.
MISSION
THETA provides expert, evidence informed advice to policy makers and health professionals about the clinical evidence and cost effectiveness, as well as the ethical and social implications, of health technologies. We are advancing the science of health technology assessment (HTA) globally by developing innovative methodologies and engaging with the international HTA community through partnerships, publications and knowledge translation activities.
VISION
As health technologies become more expensive and complex, decision makers are seeking evidence-informed policy solutions that allow health care systems to provide high quality care to patients while containing the growth of costs. However, when policy makers and health professionals try to find economic, clinical and social science evidence to inform their decisions, there is often a lack of high quality scientific evaluation of the technologies under consideration.
Our goal is to serve Ontarians and Canadians through policy relevant research in HTA. We aim to produce detailed, thoughtful work of the best quality. We strive to find new and better ways to evaluate the effect of technology on the health, economic resources, and society of Ontario. We are dedicated to sharing our knowledge with decision makers and the global HTA research community.
THETA responds to gaps in HTA evidence by conducting research that addresses questions of clinical and cost effectiveness, as well as the ethical and social implications, of health technologies. Researchers work closely with government decision makers, health service providers and health care professionals in Ontario, providing decision support by drawing on its multi-disciplinary research capacities. Our publications, knowledge translation activities and collaborations extend its impact beyond Ontario, contributing to health technology decision making and the advancement of HTA science throughout the world.