background in this article, we analyze one case instance of how proposals for change to the priority setting and resource allocation (psra) processes at a canadian healthcare institution reached the decision agenda of the organization’s senior leadership. we adopt key concepts from an established policy studies framework – kingdon’s multiple streams theory – to inform our analysis.   methods tw...

the world health organization’s (who’s) world health report 2010, “health systems financing, the path to universal coverage,” promoted universal health coverage (uhc) as an aspirational objective for country health systems. yet, in addition to the dimensions of services and coverage, distribution of coverage in the population, and financial risk protection highlighted by the report, the conside...

The editorial by Jeremy Shiffman, “Knowledge, moral claims and the exercise of power in global health”, highlights the influence on global health priority-setting of individuals and organizations that do not have a formal political mandate. This sheds light on the way key functions in global health depend on private funding, particularly from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Governments in low- and middle-income countries are legitimizing the implementation of universal health coverage (UHC), following a United Nation's resolution on UHC in 2012 and its reinforcement in the sustainable development goals set in 2015. UHC will differ in each country depending on country contexts and needs, as well as demand and supply in health care. Therefore, fundamental issues suc...

This project continues a strong record of research in the Department of Bioethics that is aimed at facilitating fair and effective allocation of resources to promote health. The research involves a variety of methodologies including conceptual analysis and empirical methods including survey research, focus groups to promote democratic deliberation, secondary analysis of large datasets, and meta...

Traditionally aversion to health inequality is modelled through a concave utility function over health outcomes. Bleichrodt et al. [Bleichrodt, H., Diecidue E., Quiggin J., 2004. Equity weights in the allocation of health care: the rank-dependent QALY model. Journal of Health Economics 23, 157-171] have suggested a "dual" approach based on the introduction of explicit equity weights. The purpos...

Models for strategic priority setting in public health and health services research typically lack coherence or omit key considerations. We propose a new model, the Seven 'I's, with seven components: innovation, identification, inequalities, incorporation, importance, influences, and interventions. It tests the 'relevance' of research, while 'excellence' will be evaluated using existing criteri...

The publication of Disease Control Priorities, 3rd edition (DCP3) is a major milestone in the global health world. DCP3 reviews and summarizes high quality health intervention effectiveness and cost-effectiveness evidence relevant to low- and middle-income countries and is freely available to users...