Network among HTA ecosystem

Abstract

This study intends to examine the main drivers of network relations among health technology assessment (HTA) organizations. Social network analysis was performed to determine the relations among HTA organizations and to visualize the main drivers of such collaboration. The members in HTA organizations such as International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research, Health Technology Assessment international, International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment, EuroScan, European Network for Health Technology Assessment, HTAsiaLink, and Health Technology Assessment Network for the Americas are said to create networks. Ten different HTA organizations were considered in the analysis, including the Ministry of Health (MoH) organizations, universities, for-profit organizations, and hospitals. The Fruchterman-Reingold algorithm was used to perform networking, and the average clustering coefficient and average path length were examined to measure collaborative performance. The network graph of the HTA ecosystem shows the highest collaborative frequency among HTA organizations, which are the members of MoH organizations, government agencies, universities, and nonprofit organizations. The average path length was 2.21, and the average clustering coefficient was 36.57, indicating an obvious clustering effect. The study results highlight that networking within the HTA ecosystem is driven by government organizations. Boosting the integration of the private sector into the system and creating data-sharing strategies are essential to foster HTA collaboration. Because HTA is shaped by local dynamics and no gold standard exists for HTA implementation, encouraging collaborative efforts is the only way to avoid redundant efforts and make health technologies available for everyone.