What is a study's perspective?

What is a study's perspective?

• A. It describes the types of costs relevant to the study's purpose with respect to perspectives of the institution and payer
• B. It outlines the trial's inclusion criteria and endpoints
• C. It specifies the sample size calculation
• D. It describes the data management plan

Answer: (A)

Study perspective defines whose costs and outcomes are included in the economic evaluation. It sets the viewpoint for what data are collected and how results are interpreted. If the analysis is from the institution’s perspective and the payer’s perspective, it means the costs and consequences considered are those relevant to those stakeholders. For the institution, you’d include costs borne by the hospital or clinic; for the payer, you’d focus on costs that affect the insurer or funding source. This framing is what determines which costs and outcomes matter in the study, making it the best description of a study’s perspective. In contrast, inclusion criteria and endpoints pertain to who is eligible and what outcomes are measured, the sample size calculation relates to study power, and the data management plan covers handling and custody of data. These are components of study design and operations, not the perspective used for economic evaluation.

Study perspective defines whose costs and outcomes are included in the economic evaluation. It sets the viewpoint for what data are collected and how results are interpreted. If the analysis is from the institution’s perspective and the payer’s perspective, it means the costs and consequences considered are those relevant to those stakeholders. For the institution, you’d include costs borne by the hospital or clinic; for the payer, you’d focus on costs that affect the insurer or funding source. This framing is what determines which costs and outcomes matter in the study, making it the best description of a study’s perspective.

In contrast, inclusion criteria and endpoints pertain to who is eligible and what outcomes are measured, the sample size calculation relates to study power, and the data management plan covers handling and custody of data. These are components of study design and operations, not the perspective used for economic evaluation.