Alberta

The foundation for any health technology assessment (HTA) is information. In fact, health technology assessment is the synthesis of many pieces of information from many different sources. The purpose of an HTA is to provide health care decision-makers with the evidence they need to make informed decisions concerning the introduction, allocation and cost-effective use of medical technologies.

Quality Improvement (QI) and evaluation projects have become increasingly important, multiplying in number and growing in complexity. Although ethics oversight principals and processes are well established for research projects, a gap exists for non-research projects. Many QI and evaluation projects have ethical implications, but ethics screening and review processes are often limited and inconsistently applied. This uncertainty and inconsistency often leads to misunderstandings about how and when ethical implications should be addressed in QI and evaluation projects.

As part of Alberta Health Services (AHS) Strategic Health Needs Assessment and Service Design 2030 project, the Institute of Health Economics has been commissioned to conduct three Knowledge Exchange events. The first of the Knowledge Exchange events: Becoming the Best: Building Sustainability - Game Changing Health Innovations was held on February 24th, 2011. The event was supported by Alberta Health Services in collaboration with Alberta Health and Wellness. Below are video records and powerpoint presentations provided at the event.