Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis to Support Healthcare Decisions

Book excerpt: Representing the first collection on the topic, this book builds from foundations to case studies, to future prospects, providing the reader with a rich and comprehensive understanding of the use of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) in healthcare. The first section of the collection presents the foundations of MCDA as it is applied to healthcare decisions, providing guidance on the ethical and theoretical underpinnings of MCDA and how to select MCDA methods appropriate to different decision settings. Section two comprises a collection of case studies spanning the decision continuum, including portfolio development, benefit–risk assessment, health technology assessment, priority setting, resource optimisation, clinical practice and shared decision making. Section three explores future directions in the application of MCDA to healthcare and identifies opportunities for further research to support these.