| Unit name | Qualitative and survey design methods for health economics and policy analysis |
|---|---|
| Unit code | BRMSM0051 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Owen-Smith |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
BRMSM0046 - Concepts in the economics and policy of health and care |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Bristol Medical School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Health Sciences |
Why is this unit important?
This unit is a mandatory unit for the MSc in Health Economics and Health Policy Analysis. It provides essential methodological skills in the area of qualitative methods and survey design.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
The aim of this course is to provide an introduction to the use of qualitative and survey design methods in health economics and policy analysis. The usefulness of qualitative techniques in informing health economics and policy analysis research questions will be discussed as will the importance of data collection methods for survey techniques. Students will explore core practical techniques around sampling, data collection and exploratory data analysis. Issues such as ethical and governance considerations, rigour and reflexivity (qualitative methods) and feasibility, validity, reliability and sensitivity to change (survey methods) will be considered and relevant software packages will be introduced.
Overview of content
Throughout, two key purposes will be considered: qualitative and survey methods to inform the assessment and evaluation of outcomes for economic assessment, and qualitative and survey methods to inform economic theory and understanding. Qualitative approaches discussed will include purposeful sampling, in-depth interviews and focus groups, ethnographic fieldwork and analytic approaches including the application of an economic lens. Survey methods for collecting outcome data will include willingness to pay and QALY valuation methods such as time trade-off, and will introduce discrete choice experiment approaches.
How will students, personally, be different at the end of this unit?
Students will have acquired essential skills in qualitative methods and survey design to assist in future study and employment.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the Unit, students should be able to:
The course will be delivered using blended learning. There will be a three-day teaching block on campus (approx. 18 hours) which will deliver most of the material related to the use of qualitative methods. This will comprise a mixture of presentation and interactive sessions and provide a forum for the exchanges required for the qualitative exercises. Online teaching (approx. 25 hours) will be linked with the tutorials (approx. 7.5 hours, distributed across TB1) and will be used to teach the survey element of the course (approx. 20 hours asynchronous, plus four tutorials), and to extend the qualitative methods work to cover advanced challenges (approx. 5 hours asynchronous plus one tutorial). Tutorials will offer the opportunity to interact with peers and tutors around various formative assessment tasks related to the qualitative and survey material. The Unit also requires self-study of around 150 hours.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
There will be ongoing formative assessment of the qualitative methods aspect of the course throughout the three-day on campus teaching block and live online teaching, through methods including individual and group exercises around sampling, data collection techniques and analytic techniques, with both tutor and peer feedback (ILOs 2-4) and critique of papers using qualitative methods in health economics and policy analysis (ILOs 1-5). Formative assessments related to the survey aspect of the course will be conducted through the fortnightly tutorials and linked to the asynchronous materials related to that tutorial. These assessments will involve activities such as: presentation of content in seminar settings around choice of technique, sampling, data collection, and concepts related to ethics and rigour; peer and tutor feedback on aspects of survey design, (ILOs 2-4) and critique of papers using survey design techniques (ILOs 1,5). These activities will prepare students for the summative assessment.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
There will be ONE summative assessment designed to assess different elements of the course material. The assessment will involve a number of components, including group tasks and individual tasks relating to survey design, with marks assigned on an individual and group basis, for both participation, and the presentation and individual work.
Appropriate provision will be put in place for any students unable to participate in the group task due to exceptional circumstances or a study support plan, with the type of provision decided on a case-by-case basis.
When assessment does not go to plan
If you do not pass the unit, you will normally be given the opportunity to take a reassessment as per the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes. Decisions on the award of reassessment will normally be taken after all taught units of the year have been completed. Reassessment will normally be in a similar format to the original assessment that has been failed.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. BRMSM0051).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
